Personal
by StarvingLunatic
Summary: Political intrigue occurs when Sesshomaru and Kikyo get married.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, this fic is kinda post-series I guess; I haven't seen the end, so I can only guess. Here's a warning for you guys, I don't explain how Sessh and Kikyo have gotten together; they're just married, call it a day.

I also don't own these characters, believe it.

Personal

Sesshomaru woke up as the sun began to make its presence known. Oh, he did not want the day to come. The day was going to be much too annoying. He just did not desire to deal with one item that he had on his schedule.

Sesshomaru knew that he should be thankful just to be alive another day because he had so much to live for. His provinces were peaceful and he had a beautiful, intelligent wife lying next to him and she was flesh and blood once again; she had him to thank for that. There was so much to be thankful for and he was willing to be grateful, if only he did not have a meeting today. He had to meet with quite possibly the most irksome of all creatures, a weasel demon.

Sesshomaru considered weasel demons to be just about the lowest of all creatures, down there with humans and wolf demons. Weasel demons bothered him because they tried to pretend that they were civilized and honorable beings when they were anything but those two things. They were truly cowardly, devious barbarians that he hated to have just one in his castle with his family.

The demon lord glanced down at his still sleeping wife, Kikyo. He liked looking at his unbelievably, indescribably wonderful wife. He could not put her into words, which for him helped explain why he was married to her; yes, they were married. She had forced him to go through with the whole human ceremony of marriage. He had quietly protested the whole event by making sure to look as displeased as possible with the whole affair until he caught sight of her in her wedding garb, which some humans in his lands had provided her with. Seeing her in a kimono for the first and, apparently, last time had made the whole human ceremony worth it to him.

People wondered why the stoic daimyo had taken a human wife; those that were aware that he was married anyway. First of all, most people did not think that he cared enough to even think about acquiring a mate. He seemed to believe that he was going to live forever and always, which meant that he would control his lands always and never require an heir. After that fact, most people thought that Sesshomaru hated humans.

Now, the dog demon was not fond of humans, but then again, he was not fond of most people and it did not matter what they were. From what he had learned, most people, humans and demons alike, were semi-intelligent at best. They had little to no sense of responsibility. They acted on emotion and desire rather than thinking things out. In short, people were fools and he failed to see the point in bothering with fools, unless it was necessary.

Kikyo certainly was not a fool; anybody with eyes could see that. She was just breathtaking to watch, just the way that she moved. How she carried herself reminded Sesshomaru of himself. She never showed any fear and never acted like she was not in control of any situation. She was always composed and never panicked. Every now and then, she did slip up, but he could forgive her for that, especially since such slips were few and far in between.

Kikyo had been the one to teach Sesshomaru forgiveness, so she was always the first to gain his newly discovered virtue. He glanced down at the dozing woman; she was probably the most powerful human that he would ever meet. One touch of her hand and will could reduce the mightiest of demons to a smothering pile of charred remains, which he thought was rather sexy. That same hand could touch him in a manner that was so tender and passionate that if he started to think about it, then it was going to be an eventful morning before he even allowed her to consider getting out of bed. He could not let things come to that because he had to get out of bed.

Sesshomaru groaned in a very low tone as he tried to ease away from his wife, but as soon as he moved, he felt her hand flex against his side. He cast his golden eyes down on her and saw that Kikyo was awake; well, she was slightly awake as her chocolate eyes were half-way open. He knew that she was going to get up with him, even though she should sleep a little longer in his opinion; he wished that she would get it in her mind that she required much more sleep than he did and she did not need to forsake her health just to keep him company.

"Don't get up yet," Kikyo requested in a quiet voice.

"I have to prepare for my meeting this afternoon," Sesshomaru replied.

"That is this afternoon, not now," she pointed out while pushing herself against her husband. The lord exhaled slowly.

"Don't tempt me. You know I won't decline," he warned her.

"I know."

"We don't have the time for me to not decline," he informed her.

"No?"

"No," he assured her.

Kikyo was not about to argue, especially since she could hear heavy footsteps rapidly approaching them. They both knew who was coming toward them. The door to the bedroom was opened loudly and they were greeted by a loud giggle before the wannabe ambush was launched. Kikyo turned her eyes from Sesshomaru to ahead of her just in time to see nothing but white. She braced herself for the weight that she thought was going to impact her, but the weight never made it.

"Rin," Sesshomaru sighed. He was holding the girl in the air, so that she could not belly-flop on him and Kikyo while they were still in the bed.

"Come on, it's time to get up. There's plenty to do!" Rin declared with a cheerful smile.

Sesshomaru only shook his head. As hard as it was to believe, especially for him, but Rin had become more energetic since Kikyo came into their lives. He was secretly pleased that Rin was overjoyed with having Kikyo around; apparently, the girl required some human contact. Although Rin and Kikyo were probably the least human humans that he had ever met, and he meant that as a compliment.

Kikyo enjoyed having Rin around as much as the child delighted in having Kikyo around. The priestess adored children, which Sesshomaru was aware of. The dog demon noted how his beloved treated Rin, much like a daughter, so he officially adopted the girl, leaving no questions open as to who the girl was or why she was around. She was their daughter and that was why she was there. Rin easily fell into the habit of calling both adults "mommy" and "daddy."

"Um...Daddy, are you gonna put me down?" Rin asked curiously because he was just holding her in the air.

"If you'll leave, so we can prepare to get up," Sesshomaru answered her.

"Okay, but you have to be fast about it," Rin informed both of them. The adults nodded to show that they understood.

Rin grinned while Sesshomaru placed her down on the floor. The child exited the room and waited for her parents to emerge from the room. The couple left the room dressed in their usual garments. Kikyo continued to dress in her priestess clothing, even though she was a noble now because she was most comfortable in the attire; besides, she was still packing enough spiritual energy to bring even the most vicious of demons to his knees. Her choice in clothing did affect Rin.

The little girl now refused to wear a kimono or a yukata. She wore hakama now; she tried not to wear red or white because she did want some individuality and not to look too much like her parents. Despite how much Rin did admire the adults and tried to dress similar to them, she did reject wearing footwear, much to Kikyo's dismay. The girl did enough running around for footwear to save her many cuts and scrapes. Rin did not care about being injured, though, which Kikyo knew was the mindset of most children.

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Sesshomaru had lunch with his family; he wanted to do as many things as possible to avoid thinking about the meeting that he had coming up. He stared at his two ladies and he considered how one day soon, they were going to have to expand their family. He bet that Rin would enjoy being a big sister. He knew that Kikyo would make an excellent mother.

Most might assume that Sesshomaru was against having a half human child, but he did not even think about things like that. He thought of any child between him and Kikyo as their child, simple as that. Their child would be his heir because he knew that they would raise the child to be able to lead; no one would dare challenge their child, half human or not, unless that person was a total fool.

The silver-haired male actually believed that one of his father's stupidest moves of all time was to die when Inuyasha was born. That woman was not strong enough to raise a born social outcast properly to make the boy rise above everyone's hatred. Sesshomaru would never let his offspring turn out like Inuyasha had. He would not allow his child to be treated as something less than perfect and he would make sure that his child knew that it was above everyone else. His child would essentially be just like him, perfection.

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After lunch and all of his musings, Sesshomaru prepared for his day to be ruined. Oh, how he loathed dealing with weasel demons. They were always scheming on something, always trying to put something over on someone. He was meeting with the ambassador to discuss building a road between their two territories to promote trade between them and strengthen the relationship (which did not exist) between the two lords.

The dog demon was not thinking of his intense dislike of the weasels, but of all of the people that lived in his province. The trade would help the people prosper. His lands were not in desperate want of much since it was much of the land was good for farming and they were located by the sea while the weasels controlled a territory that was land-locked. The weasels had very fine fabrics that Sesshomaru was not opposed to opening his land to and they also produced some of the finest poultry, which he expected from the egg-sucking, bird-eaters.

Sesshomaru was wary of the weasels because he had heard that the sneaks had been making inquiries on who it was that the dog lord was mated to. He did not like anybody being curious about his woman. She was none of their concern, but the emissary would see his beloved Kikyo. He was gradually making her known to the people that he dealt with.

Sesshomaru greeted the weasel agent upon his arrival. The weasel was like Sesshomaru in the way that he appeared rather human. He did have a thin long nose and beady jet black. His hair was down his back and auburn, something similar to color of weasel fur. His pale cheeks were brightened by some rouge. He was short and introduced himself as Hideo.

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Sesshomaru sat down with Hideo in a plain room with a long table between them for papers and such that they would surely require during the meeting. Servants offered Hideo plenty of things, which he declined on; he was probably the only weasel demon that did not take advantage of hospitality, Sesshomaru thought. When the room was clear of everyone except for Sesshomaru and Hideo, the weasel demon began to make his proposal on the deal.

Minutes into the meeting, the door behind Sesshomaru slid open and Kikyo silently entered. She sat to the right of her husband, just a bit behind him. Hideo was a bit perplexed by what he believed to be an intrusion by an upstart human female. He then noted the lord's reaction, or lack there of. Sesshomaru remained completely focused on the task at hand without even glancing at Kikyo.

"Will you continue?" Sesshomaru asked Hideo, who seemed stuck on the fact that a woman had the nerve to just be in the room with them while they were handling business.

Hideo nodded when he realized that the lord had asked him a question. He continued on, despite how odd the meeting became with Kikyo's presence. It was nerve-wracking enough when he had Sesshomaru staring at him with those frozen, killer golden eyes, but now the woman was in the room and he was not sure why she was there. He was confused about what he should do as she sat there formally, watching the floor. Should he address her also, he wondered, even though the lord seemed to be ignoring her altogether?

Once Hideo was done with his part, the meeting became all the more strange to him because the dog demon did not comment at all. Sesshomaru considered everything that he had just heard before he opened his mouth. What the lord said then further bemused his guest.

"What's your opinion?" Sesshomaru asked and Hideo thought that the daimyo was addressing him. He was about to open his mouth, but the third person in the room spoke up first.

"Doesn't it all depend on if his lord honors the treaties? He could always use the road as a swift means to lead an army against you," Kikyo pointed out in a calm tone.

Sesshomaru nodded; she was learning. He was trying to get her to see that no one in his world meant what they said. He was aware that in the peasant world, there were people that were actually kind and thoughtful, but not in his world. He wanted her to learn to assume that everybody that said something to her had some underlying plot; he told her that she should think that whenever someone extended their hand to her in friendship, they had a snake in their sleeve to bite her.

Hideo appeared rather offended by Kikyo's words; probably because there was some truth to them, the couple figured. The ambassador felt that he would not take such abuse from a human wench. What right did she have to make such noise anyway?

"Now see here—" Hideo started in a heated tone, but he was smoothly cut off.

"You'll have to excuse her. She speaks her thoughts rather plainly," Sesshomaru replied; it was one of the things that he loved about her. She said what was on her mind without fear and with great confidence; he thought those were sexy qualities.

Kikyo continued to speak rather straightforwardly through out the whole meeting. Hideo was clearly not enjoying her opinion and it showed on his face. Sesshomaru enjoyed the conference immensely because his wife brought some spark to it; she had the affect on gatherings.

The dog demon often had Kikyo attend meetings, but he liked to keep people guessing as to what she was doing there. He insisted that she arrive at her leisure, so she always showed up late because she liked to make sure Rin was secure before she left the girl. Kikyo always came in and sat right behind Sesshomaru without saying anything. Sometimes, she did not speak through out the whole conference; she would just observe how things were handled. Other times, he requested her opinion, but he liked it best when she just offered her thoughts out of the blue. It always unsettled everyone in the room, even men who had seen her at meetings before.

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Hideo sat in the doorway of his guestroom, penning a note by candlelight. The letter read: My lord, the rumors are quite true. Lord Sesshomaru is mated to a human priestess. I do not know what sort of powers she has, but if the rumors are even truer and she is as powerful as they claim, she could prove to be a great weapon for that arrogant dog to use against any demons that he dislikes. She could even be used a propaganda weapon to rally humans to his side should he chose to start a war. I have not gathered whether he manipulated her into being with him, but it might have something to do with him pretending to value her opinion. Unless, he honestly does hold stock in the wench's words. Either way, she could prove to be a useful asset to you against the damnable son of a bitch.

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Next time: Sesshomaru continues to be annoyed with bad news.


	2. Chapter 2

Me no own these characters….wait, no I just don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, and Rin. Damn near everybody else in this story is crappy creation of my own. Damn it, I am depressed.

When we last left Sesshomaru he was being annoyed by a weasel demon coming to discuss a treaty and the demon ended up writing to his lord to tell him about Sesshomaru being married to Kikyo. What happens next? Read on to find out.

Sesshomaru thought that life could go back to normal once he rid himself of Hideo. They came to a rather lopsided agreement on the road building and trading treaties that they were working on. Sesshomaru found that having Kikyo present in a conference threw people off so much that they hardly noticed that the meeting stopped going their way almost all the time. Sesshomaru also had negotiating skills that were practically unrivaled because he knew how to unnerve people by just sitting there and staring at them with no expression in his golden eyes; it was amazing how easily some delegates were shaken by unwavering silence, especially weasel demons.

The dog demon thought that he could relax, as much as he typically did anyway. He knew that it would be great to sleep in for a few extra minutes and just feel his beloved pressed against him. He could also check in with Rin's tutors and find out how things were going with her, even though he knew that Kikyo had that well in hand. Kikyo kept up with the girl's studies, but he liked to add in when he could because he believed a good father would do such a thing. And then a messenger had to come and ruin his whole plan.

Lord Itachi, a daimyo from the east contacted Sesshomaru. He knew that it was not going to be to his liking before he even read the letter, but when he opened it, things got worse. The weasel demon lord informed him of the worst possible news, which was that he would like to spend some time in the west as a gesture of goodwill and to become familiar with the culture of the western people. Sesshomaru really did not wish to see that beady-eyed lord, but it would be discourteous to deny the request, especially only on the grounds that he had stepped on things with more personality than that blasted weasel. So, he was going to have to put up with that thin lord for who only knew how long. He suspected it was cosmic payback for something that he did.

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Sesshomaru did not show any expression as the decadent entourage of the weasel clan approached his ancestral home. There was a train of horses and palanquins headed toward his castle and he was just watching from a balcony while trying not to transform and go slaughter the whole band before they made it into the stronghold. He really did not wish to deal with the weasels, but he would have to play the good host; not because it was something his duties as lord required, but because his wife would expect him to behave civilly toward their guests, no matter how filthy their guests were.

Kikyo could not see why Sesshomaru so utterly despised the weasel demons; they seemed like any other demons and nobles. He insisted that she only thought that because she never had to share air with more than one of them for more than an hour. She had not really dealt with more than a few of them personally, first as the protector of the Shikon jewel and then as a traveler through their lands once or twice. She failed to see why they should be hated more than some other demon, but then she reminded herself that he was Sesshomaru and sometimes his reasoning came from complex facts built upon centuries of information.

Kikyo went to join Sesshomaru to greet their arriving guests. They were going to let Rin join them, but as they thought about how hyper she was, they were not certain if such a thing was a good idea. Rin could be very well-behaved, but usually when sweets were involved to bribe her. She really required something to focus on that was interesting and not moving for her to remain still and greeting guests was not that something. So, the child was left to her own devices, which generally translated into her running wild around the castle and chasing something or someone.

Kikyo stood behind Sesshomaru as he was preparing to falsely greet the weasel lord. The man entered with servants, who Sesshomaru suspected were soldiers, at his side. The servants were dressed plainly, but their movements were a dead giveaway that they were bodyguards. At the weasel lord's side was a woman, another weasel demon, that they guessed was his wife. Sesshomaru tried his best not to look offended by having such people in his home, but he bet that his ancestors were just rolling over in their graves over the company he was keeping at the moment. He was fooling everyone else about his disgust, except for Kikyo anyway.

Before anyone had a chance to say anything; they all turned to a doorway on the right. They could hear footsteps heavily approaching the room. A small calico-colored kitten charged into the room and was followed by a giggling child, namely Rin. Everyone watched as the cat ran by the weasel daimyo and Rin dived to catch the tiny creature. She knocked into the lord's legs, causing him to fall to the floor. Rin failed to notice her mistake because the feline was still not in her custody and that was the only thing on her mind.

"Should I?" Kikyo asked quietly. Sesshomaru replied by shaking his head; it was not like Rin would listen until she had her precious kitten safely in her grip.

The little girl ended up knocking over five people before she was apprehended by a weasel servant. He lifted her up by the front of her shirt while the other nobles began to stand up. Rin whined as the cat seemed to escape her; Kikyo stepped in the feline's path and picked the small animal up. She then turned her attention to the man holding her adopted daughter. She was ready to demand that he release her child, but she knew that Sesshomaru would take charge of the situation.

"Filthy human brat!" the weasel lord declared and he raised his hand as if he was going to strike Rin.

The child knew that she should finch because she could see in his onyx-colored eyes that he desperately wanted to do her harm. She just could not believe that someone would even think to hit her in front her parents. After all, if someone was to touch her in a harmful manner with her parents standing right there, it would be like committing suicide.

"Lord Itachi, I would advise against that," Sesshomaru commented.

"This human—" the other lord tried to argue, but Sesshomaru interjected before he could finish.

"Is my daughter," the dog demon informed his guests. He was astonished because the weasels had not been before him for more than a minute and he wanted nothing more than to kill them. It was one thing to grab Rin, she did need to be stopped, but to disrespect them all by insulting her and then to consider striking her was well overboard as to what was proper behavior. Rin should have been turned over to him, not because she was his daughter, but because she was a child and obviously a member of his household. No polite person would discipline another's household without an excellent reason, but that seemed beyond weasels.

"Your daughter?" all of the guests echoed.

"Put her down," Sesshomaru calmly commanded.

The servant released Rin, who hit the floor with the grace of a cat. She charged over to her mother and grinned up at the priestess while holding her hands out, silently requesting her pet. Kikyo smiled slightly while handing the child her little kitten. Rin grinned even wider as she took the feline and left the adults alone. Kikyo turned her attention back to their guests; she was already starting to see why her husband disliked those demons.

Kikyo eyed the weasel lord, Itachi. He had beady, ebony eyes, like black diamonds; they were a dominate trait among his kind. His face was narrow and pale along with thin lips and nose. He was a few inches shorter than Sesshomaru. His hair was auburn and fell to his shoulders, but was pulled into a tight dragon tail at the very nape of his neck. His clothing was nearly flamboyant, clearly worn to show his importance.

Kikyo could sense wickedness in the lord; she could practically see evil radiating off of the man. She did not think too much of because she had yet to meet a weasel demon that lacked darkness of the soul. In fact, she had yet to sense a good-natured or well-intended demon that came to meet with her husband; believe it or not, such demons did exist. She could understand why such demons did come see Sesshomaru, though; no one that rose to power was clean. Everyone in power was drenched in blood and most people had ambitious natures.

Lord Itachi met eyes with Kikyo and, for a millisecond, they stared at each other like their eyes contained all of the information for existence. Kikyo broke the gaze by looking away; she immediately knew that she did not like that man. She desired to know his true reasons for visiting because it was obvious that his stated reasons were lies.

Itachi watched Kikyo for a moment, making sure not to do it for too long or Sesshomaru would notice. He did not want the dog demon to note that he was interested in the woman. He did think that she had gall to wear her priestess clothing in a house of demons. He was shocked that Sesshomaru would allow such a thing. Was he humoring the priestess or was he frightened of her power and appeasing her by letting her wear whatever she wished? Itachi believed that he would find out.

After some formalities, Sesshomaru had his very unwanted guests taken to the apartments they would be staying in for their visit. He wondered how much damage would be done to the castle if he burned the apartments, after the weasels were done using them of course. Perhaps they could salt the apartments if an all out cleansing by fire was too extreme, he considered. He would run the ides by some people and see if it was plausible.

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"Rin, what are you looking for?" Kikyo asked curiously when she discovered the child in the garden with her head in a hole between some rocks.

"Ran," the girl answered.

"Your kitten?"

"Uh-huh. We're playing hide-n-seek again. She's really good at it," Rin reported with a laugh.

"Don't you think that it's a bit careless to play hide-n-seek with such a small creature?" Kikyo asked.

"It's fun. Have you seen her?" Rin asked as she stood up to face her mother.

"Not since you ran off with her. Shall I assist you in searching?" Kikyo offered.

"Thanks, Mommy!" Rin smiled. The girl was more than happy to have Kikyo for a mother. She could recall her birth mother only slightly and she did miss her real mother and family a great deal. But, even at the tender age of ten, Rin understood perfectly well that she had to be thankful for everything that she got in life because she could have died with her family and then she had died by those wolves. She now wanted to live life to the fullest while appreciating everything that she had and hopefully make her adopted parents as happy as they made her.

Kikyo held her hand out and Rin merrily took the offered hand. They strolled inside to go search for Rin's beloved pet. The child looked around, as if checking for something, and then turned her eyes up to the priestess.

"Mommy," Rin said in a low voice.

"Yes?" Kikyo replied.

"Do you like Daddy's guests?"

"I am not fond of them so far," the adult female answered honestly.

"They feel weird," Rin commented.

Kikyo nodded slightly in agreement. Rin was rather good at feeling people out; she was incredibly sensitive to not only people, but places and situations too. Her ability helped her avoid dangerous people while she was running around, but she seemed to ignore the feeling at times when it came to certain situations. Kikyo guessed that was all about being a carefree ten-year-old child, even though she was sure that Rin was more aware of her own mortality than most other people, not just children.

"They're not gonna going to stay long, right?" Rin asked.

"I hope not," Kikyo replied.

"Me too. Are we going to have to see them?"

"I doubt it. It is a big castle, located in a very vast area. Perhaps they will take an interest in something outside."

"I hope so," the girl muttered and Kikyo smiled a bit as they continued to search for the bobtailed kitten.

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Itachi sat outside of one of his rooms and thought on what he had learned just that day. The priestess was an unsettling woman. He had met her gaze a couple more times after that first one before introductions and she did not waver at all. It was like she was staring into his mind and cutting apart his psyche.

The lord could already tell that he did not like Kikyo and he was willing to bet that the feeling was mutual. He considered that the priestess might be so powerful that Sesshomaru was actually her puppet and not the other way around. It would explain why she was always hanging around behind him; it was like she had her hand in his back. But, what would a priestess want with the dog demon? His lands? His army? Perhaps she would use him to lore in other demons and then destroy them. But, that did not make any sense to him and he was a man that could stretch things.

He did consider that Kikyo might possibly be a weapon of some kind for Sesshomaru. He could use her to eliminate his nearby enemies and he would not be connected to the deaths for the simple fact that no one would even know about the deaths if things were handled properly. A human with enough spiritual energy could reduce a demon to a pile of ashes that would drift away with a breeze and if no one was around, then no one would know what happened. A priestess willing to do the bidding of a demon was quite an interesting concept.

"And I want that," Itachi muttered to himself.

The onyx-eyed lord was taken from his musings by something brushing up against him. He directed his attention to the offending thing to discover that it was a kitten. He frowned when he realized that it was the same cat that little human brat had been chasing after earlier when she embarrassed him and got away unpunished. He snarled in fury.

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"Ran-chan!" Rin called for her pet. She was still with her mother and they had not come across any signs of the cat.

"Perhaps she returned to your bedroom," Kikyo commented because she knew that Rin's little feline did not wander aimlessly for more than a couple of hours and they had been searching much longer than that.

Rin then heard a small meow. She let go of her mother's hand and ran off to follow to sound. She rounded the corner and stopped because she did not see her pet, but she could hear the mewing clearly. She scanned the area for where the tiny kitten might be. When she heard it again, she realized the noise was coming from beneath her, so she hopped off of the elevated floor and looked underneath the foundation. There were small puddles of blood that led her to her poor cat.

"Mommy!" Rin shouted, causing Kikyo to charge over. She thought that the child was in serious danger, but when she saw the girl, she knew it was emotional distress that made Rin cry out.

"Rin, what's wrong?" Kikyo asked when she saw most of the girl's body was under their living space.

"It's Ran," Rin replied as she removed her pet from where she was resting and then she stood up for her mother to see what happened to her pet. The kitten was bleeding from cut wounds all over its body. The creature was missing both an ear and a foot. "She's dead!" Rin bawled.

"Who would butcher Ran?" Kikyo asked the air in disbelief.

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Next time: Sesshomaru gets even more annoyed as his unwanted guests show that they lack manners.


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. Just borrowing them, believe it.

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Sesshomaru was perturbed, which was putting it mildly. Some fool had gone mad as far as he was concerned because someone had hurt Rin. She was not harmed physically, but she was under emotional stress. Someone had cut up Rin's favorite pet, her cat Ran, as if it was a piece of meat. He had revived the little kitten, but that was not the point. Rin was still shaken by the dastardly deed.

The silver-haired demon smelled a weasel on the cat when he returned the annoying creature back to life; no, he was not fond of the little hairball. He could not narrow down his suspects because of the cat's blood and Rin's tears mingling with the weasel stench. He hated to think that some weasels were acting foolish so soon, but it was possible. It was also possible that the little kitten was wearing the scent from when it ran into the middle of all of those weasels earlier in the day. All he knew was that he would look into it and the person that had slaughtered Rin's kitten had better make plans for the afterlife. No one made Rin cry and just got away with it, not even the little imp Jakken.

Rin had wept, not just when she found her feline deceased, but when her adopted father brought the creature back to the land of the living. She cried because while her pet was alive, she was still missing an ear and her front right paw; she would always bear those scars. Who would do such a thing to Ran, Rin kept asking herself. She did not understand it because Ran never hurt anyone; she was only a kitten after all. The crime against her little feline also made her recollect back when she was small and helpless, left to the mercy of those around her and getting none of it.

The world baffled Rin from what she saw of it. There were so many contradictions and matters that made absolutely no sense to her. She did not see why the strong subjugated the weak, why people seemed so intent on killing each other, why the first person to show her kindness was actually someone that was rather apathetic toward all forms of life. Out of everything she had seen and every person that she had met, only one person made complete sense to her and that was Kikyo.

Why did Kikyo make sense to Rin? Well, the woman was strong, but she never made it a point to abuse that power in any way. She helped people in any way that she could because she could. Rin thought that people should help people if it was possible because at some point in time, everyone needed some help. She felt those that gave out assistance got assistance and that was part of the reason behind why she had tried to help Lord Sesshomaru when she came across him a few years ago; it seemed like she was right in that regard.

At the moment, Rin was resting with her head in Kikyo's lap. Her little kitten was sleeping next to her and she was stroking the injured animal's back. Kikyo was caressing Rin's head to help keep her calm and to assure her that everything was going to be all right; Rin wondered if her adopted mother knew even half of the amount of appreciation she held for the woman's loving touch.

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It took Rin a few days to get over her pet's wounds and she could get back to her usual things. Sesshomaru and Kikyo suspected that it was the specific day that caused Rin to cheer up; it was the day that she did archery with Kikyo. Being the daughter of very intelligent, educated, and capable people meant that Rin did have quite a schedule, which included archery lessons; not to mention, history lessons, calligraphy, math, and other training. Her parents did know how long the girl would sit still for her lessons before it was torture and her mind wandered, so her schedule was set up to keep her in place and paying attention for as long as possible with many of her lessons. For things like archery, though, Rin was content to stay with Kikyo all day.

Sometimes, Kikyo practiced with Rin, but much of the time she instructed the girl. Rin was a natural, or so it seemed anyway because she learned so quickly. The child was a very good shot already; Sesshomaru joked that he should give her a horse and put her on the battlefield where she obviously belonged. The first time that he said it, Kikyo had glared at him to make him aware that she did not find the remark funny, but that did not stop him from saying it again and again. She was not teaching Rin for warfare, but for self-defense and also as a projectile for her spiritual energy.

Yes, Rin actually had spiritual energy and both of her parents wanted to develop that. They wanted her to be able to protect herself first and foremost. Kikyo also wanted her to be able to protect others; Sesshomaru could care less than nothing about "others." As long as Rin could take care of herself when the time came, Sesshomaru was good with that; both he and Kikyo did want her to be equipped with as many means as possible for fending off those that might harm her.

"Mommy," Rin said as she armed her long bow once more.

"Yes?" Kikyo answered.

"Shoot with me," the child requested.

"All right. Might you fetch my bow?"

Rin grinned and went to go get her mother's long bow. Kikyo glanced at the target that the girl had been shooting at; it was a large board several yards away with a small red circle painted in the middle of it. The child came extremely close to the center many times, but it looked like she was pulling her shots a bit to the right.

"Here you go, Mommy," Rin said as she handed Kikyo her bow and quiver of arrows.

"Thank you, Rin-chan," Kikyo replied, which caused the girl to smile.

"Hey, Mommy, want to have a contest?" Rin proposed.

"For what?"

"I get as much cake as I want if I win."

"And if I win?" Kikyo asked.

Rin thought about it. What would be a good prize for her mother that she could deliver on? It only took her a few seconds to come up with something. "I won't wake you early in the morning and I won't dive on you to get outta bed," the girl offered.

"How could I pass up such a deal?" the priestess replied with a smile.

The two ladies started their contest, but only managed to get off a few shots before they both halted. They looked to their left; Rin turned her whole head while Kikyo only cut her eyes in the direction. Two male demons that worked for Itachi were watching them. What did they want, both mother and daughter wondered.

"You're pretty good with the bow," one bodyguard commented. He had ebony-colored hair unlike most weasels while his partner had the usual auburn hair. They were both fairly tall men, but the black-haired one was a bit taller.

"Think they're good with other elongated objects?" the auburn-haired warrior crudely remarked.

Kikyo frowned in disgust. She moved to block their view of Rin because she did not like the way the men were eyeing them. She hated to think what might be on their minds, especially in regards to her daughter.

"What can I do for you, gentlemen?" Kikyo inquired as politely as possible to two men that were practically shaming her with their gaze.

The two demons laughed a bit, but she failed to see what was so funny. The duo then had the nerve to approach Kikyo and Rin. Kikyo tensed, but she stood her ground as the pair stood mere inches from her and her adopted child. She watched then intensely with cold eyes, pretty much daring them to try something and she would make them regret it for all of one second before they found out what they were to be reincarnated as; she would not allow anyone, guest or otherwise, touch Rin in any unfavorable manner.

"You're actually a good looking human," the auburn-haired warrior commented, as if she was going to take that as a compliment.

"Gentlemen, and I use the term as a mere formality now, it would do you well to answer my question as to what I can do for you or be on your way. So, what can I do for you?" Kikyo inquired once again.

"What's wrong with us just being here for the fresh air? We're being nice and everything, even telling you how pretty you are. You should be the same," the shorter fellow replied with a crooked smirk.

Kikyo frowned again; she basically scowled. She disliked that he had piece of a point. They were not really doing anything, aside for making her uncomfortable with their eyes and words. The ebony-haired gent glanced down at Rin and smiled at her. Rin ducked behind Kikyo even more; okay, Kikyo was scowling now, very deeply in fact. The duo was testing her patience with the wrong thing. She doubted that her husband would care much if she happened to rid their home of two obvious morons before they did something extremely stupid.

"You know, I'm glad Lord Sesshomaru said this was his daughter. I would've thought that she was just a cute boy if he hadn't said anything," the black-haired one commented.

"I don't think she likes you," the other teased his partner while noticing Rin's expression. The child looked utterly disturbed by being anywhere near the man, which her mother took into account.

"Sirs, once again and this will be the last time, I must now insist that you state your business here or be on your way," the Lady commanded.

The duo only smiled, like they did not take Kikyo seriously. She doubted that Sesshomaru would lament should she turned the weasels into something less than ash because of the way the men were distressing their daughter. She considered the fact that their lord would never know; she did not see any witnesses around, except for Rin and she knew that Rin would never tell.

"All right, you two, I understand that you're obviously not the smartest of your breed. I urge you to leave now," Kikyo warned the pair. They were still her husband's guests, so they deserved a warning before she rid the planet of their annoying presence.

"Or else what?" the auburn-haired warrior asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah," the other foolishly concurred.

The auburn-haired demon then had the nerve to reach other in order to touch Kikyo. She caught his wrist before he got to her cheek; she had surprised him with such speedy movement. He frowned when she did not release him, so he tried to pull his hand back. She strongly considered burning his hand right off of his wrist, but she spared him that fate. She gently let his hand go.

"Leave," the priestess ordered them in a stern tone.

The pair seemed to think on her words before finally taking her seriously. They trotted off while Rin stepped out from behind Kikyo. The woman glanced down at Rin to make sure that she was all right. She put her hand on the girl's head to assure her that everything was going to be all right.

"I don't like them," Rin whispered.

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Sesshomaru ran into Kikyo in the hallway by chance a little after she was finished with Rin. They would have passed each other and gone on their way, but he had to stop. He grabbed her rather hard and yanked her to him. She gasped softly in surprise as she collided with his chest.

"You smell like them," he commented briskly.

"Like who?" she asked.

"The weasels. Why is that?" he demanded to know.

"They were standing near me," she answered.

"How near?"

"Very."

The dog demon frowned and growled. "Why?"

"They never said," she replied.

"This is just unacceptable. Go bathe and burn those clothes," he ordered.

"Sesshomaru," she protested. She thought that his command was a little extreme. She was aware that he had a good nose, even for a demon, but was it necessary for her to really burn her clothes? "I could wash them," she proposed.

"No, burn them and make sure you soak in the bath for at least two hours," he demanded.

Kikyo decided not to argue because Sesshomaru seemed very irritated by a matter that she did not very much understand. She did not want to bother him more than he was by debating the issue, especially with the weasel demons still in the castle. He seemed to be getting more irked by the minute.

The dog demon was more than ready to tear his "guests" apart. It was bad enough that he had to provide them with food, shelter, and security while wondering what plot they had against him. There was also the fact that they took everything that he offered and then requested more, but they had just gone too far now. He was already certain one of those bastards had been the murderer of Rin's pet cat and now they had come within three feet of his wife; that was just disrespectful.

Demons, having super senses compared to humans, meant that they had certain etiquette to follow that would be beyond a human's understanding. Now, a demon should stand at least three feet away from a claimed member of the opposite sex. Why? To avoid getting their smell on, say, a lord's wife. It was a very offensive thing to do.

As far as Sesshomaru was concerned with his nose, scents lingered for days. He would not be able to take his beloved smelling like a weasel; he also would not stand for thase fools disrespecting his wife in such a way even if she had not known that they were doing such a thing. He would inform her and then educate them on their place while in his home.

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Next time: Sesshomaru "educates" his "guests."


	4. Chapter 4

No, I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. The other guys, yeah, I thought of them, but they t'aint something to brag about.

4-----------------

Kikyo was ambushed in the bedroom almost as soon as she stepped in. The assailant managed to sneak up on her and cover her mouth with a very familiar hand, so she could not scream; not that she would ever consider doing such a thing anyway. She did get out a surprised gasp before the warm hand silenced her completely.

"What happened to your reflexes, priestess? Now you're at my mercy. That is such a pity." The hand moved a couple of fingers to allot her a chance to respond.

"You have left my hands free," she pointed out.

"Well, then, you'd like to think I'm in danger then, but we both know that isn't the case. I could always snap your neck before you get your chance to purify me," he countered.

"Must you be so morose?"

"Turn around."

Kikyo complied with the command and turned to face her attacker. Sesshomaru was standing there with his usual neutral expression in place. She tried to read his golden eyes for some sign of how his day went, that way she would know if she should try to relax him or if they could just go to bed. She knew that when she saw him in the hall earlier he had been beyond bothered, especially when he caught a hint of weasel stench on her. She had burned her clothes as he had ordered just because she did not want to add to his stress, especially when she knew that those so-called guests of theirs would stress him completely before their visit was halfway done.

Sesshomaru stared down at his petite wife; she still smelled like those accursed weasels to him, even though he could tell that she used everything possible to get rid of it or cover it up. He really would have to teach those weasels their place for polluting his wife with their horrid smell, but at the moment, he did not even want to think about them. Right now, his major concern was making Kikyo pleasant to his nose again.

The dog demon leaned down and captured Kikyo's mouth in a gentle, but passionate kiss. She returned the kiss and smiled against his lips; perhaps, he was not as irked as he was earlier, she thought. When Sesshomaru pulled away, he began planting soft along her jaw and she was aware where things were going. It was a good thing that she had won the archery contest with Rin because she was going to want to sleep late tomorrow.

--------------------------

Kikyo stirred from her sleep in the morning, half expecting to wake up alone. Much to her surprise and delight, Sesshomaru was lying next to her, twisting a lock of her ebony hair in his clawed fingers. She leaned over and kissed him as morning greeting. He turned to look at her.

"How long have you been awake?" she asked curiously.

"Not long," he replied.

She knew that "not long" meant that he had been up at least an hour. He had a different concept of him than she did it would seem. She would prefer that he saw to his duties rather just lying next to her while she was sleeping because she did not think that it was an interesting way to kill time, just staring at her, she meant. He apparently thought otherwise and deep down, she was flattered by that.

Sesshomaru was basking in their sweet mixed scents and the fact that she no longer smelled of those damnable weasels. When he woke up, he was going to tend to some matters, but he happened to glance at her and found that he had to stay put. The serene expression on her face had caught his attention; he enjoyed seeing that look on her sleeping face. He had resisted the urge to nuzzle her; he would have woken her up if he had done such a thing while she was resting.

"Beloved," the demon said.

"Yes?"

"Don't let those weasels come within three feet of you again. It is extremely bad manners on their part. I don't know why they would do something like that, except for the fact that weasel demons are just plain barbarians. Don't let them come that close to you again and if they do come near you, you should hurt them as much as possible as that is your right. It will help them comprehend not to come near you again and possibly save them from me having to kill them," the lord informed Kikyo.

"But, they are you guests," she pointed out.

"They should act the part and mind their manners. They will not disrespect you in our home."

Kikyo nodded to show that she understood and she agreed with him. They were being very hospitable to those weasels, so the least that they could do was be polite while they were at the castle. She hoped that they left soon, like that day.

She noted that the weasels did not seem very interested in anything around the place. She actually preferred not to know what they did for entertainment. She did not want them to stick around for her to find out either.

Sesshomaru and Kikyo parted ways shortly after freshening up for the day. She went to see Rin while he had a bit of business to take care if. He would be damned if he was going to let anybody, lord, demon, or otherwise come into his home and do whatever. He was not going to let them believe that they could do whatever either.

---------------------------------

The golden-eyed lord caught up with two familiar scents out by the garden that his wife and daughter frequented. He was angry already that Kikyo had smelled like the weasels, but now to know that weasels were hanging out in places that both his beloved and their child spent a good part of their day in, well, it was too much. It was like they were trying to see how far they could push him in only a matter of days before it was just necessary for him to slaughter them all. He was certain that if their behavior persisted, it would not take long for him to simply slay the lot of them to save himself the annoyance.

The dog demon approached the two young demon males that were just relaxing in the garden, speaking to each other. He stopped a couple of feet away from them; they did not cease conversing with each other, even though they were very aware of his presence. He knew those scents much more than he liked and they were being rude to him. They might as well ask him to murder them, he thought.

"Good day," Sesshomaru greeted the bodyguards with all the emotion found in a piece of bent metal.

"Good day, milord," they both replied. They were reclining on some trees and did not bother to stand up right before the lord. They were just begging for trouble in Sesshomaru's opinion.

"I see you two have found sanctuary in the garden," the daimyo commented while fighting the urge to just put his hand through their torsos and calling it a day.

"It's a nice place," the ebony-haired young man replied.

"Yes, my mate and little one are fond of this area. They were out here yesterday. Perhaps you took notice of them," the silver-haired demon said.

"You mean your humans, milord?" the auburn-haired weasel asked with a bit of a smile. It was like he was laughing at Sesshomaru because of the family that the lord had.

"You were here with them. I suppose you might like to tell me why?" Sesshomaru sounded like he was making a request when it was a command. He wanted to know what they thought they were doing his wife's presence, getting their stomach-turning funk all over her.

"Milord?" they both pretended to not follow what Sesshomaru meant, unknowingly dancing on his last and very raw nerve.

"Why were you in this garden while my wife and child were here?" Sesshomaru asked plainly.

"Sir, we didn't mean any harm," the black-haired youth argued.

Sesshomaru sighed and pinched his nose a bit. If the issue was them harming his two favorite females, the weasels would be dead by now because there would be nothing to discuss. It was about etiquette and if they had any manners or brains at all, they would just apologize and beg for his forgiveness, which they would not have gotten anyway. Instead, they wanted to play like fools when he was not in the mood for games of any kind. He would just punish them and move on with his life before he truly lost his patience.

The dog demon struck with a swiftness that the younger demons could hardly comprehend. All they saw was him put his hand up and then the next thing they knew, he was holding two round objects in his hand. It took them a moment to realize what the items were and then they started screaming while covering their faces with their hands. Blood ran down the left side of the black-haired demon's face while the crimson liquid oozed down the right side of his partner's face.

"I don't know what your lord is planning or if you two were just being very stupid, but let me warn you now to stay away from my mate and our daughter. You don't have any right approaching either of them. You are meaningless servants. Approach her again and she will kill you," Sesshomaru promised the now wounded bodyguards and then he walked off.

---------------------------------

Itachi was engaged in a game of chess against himself. His wife was sitting quietly in the corner, reading. They were interrupted by Lord Sesshomaru, who invited himself into the room.

"Good day, milord," Itachi said and Sesshomaru did not respond. The weasel lord laughed a bit, probably because he was uncomfortable with the silent dog in his presence. "Perhaps you would enjoy a game," he offered Sesshomaru while motioning to the chessboard.

"I don't play children's games," the golden-eyed demon replied, causing the other nobleman to frown.

"Then what brings you by?"

"Your men need discipline."

"Careful, Sesshomaru. You're out of line," Itachi warned his host. It was a bit rude for the dog demon to say such a thing, but he was beyond caring at the moment.

"No, your men were out of line, completely out of line. Here is proof of the fact," Sesshomaru commented and he smoothly flung two spherical objects at the shorter man.

Itachi wondered what Sesshomaru was going on about and then the items landed on his chessboard. He gasped when he saw what they were, a pair of onyx-colored eyes. He frowned and turned his furious eyes up at the other aristocrat.

"What's the meaning of this?" the weasel lord demanded to know. He hoped it was not what it appeared to be, namely a pair of eyes from his servants.

"Your men lack manners and need to be disciplined. Two of them were very close to Kikyo. See to it that doesn't happen again because I won't be warning anyone else," Sesshomaru replied.

"You can't just punish my men," Itachi objected.

"I believe I just did. When they come so close to my family, I will do what I see fit your men. So, make sure that this mistake is not repeated," the platinum-haired male stated before turning around and walking out of the room. Itachi snarled when he was certain that the dog demon could not hear him.

"That damned, arrogant bastard," Itachi grumbled. He could not believe the gall of Sesshomaru. How dare that mutt discipline his men by snatching out their eyes? He did not care what the men did; tearing out their eyes was not something that Sesshomaru should have done as a punishment, in the weasel lord's opinion anyway. He did not think that Sesshomaru had a right to punish his men, no matter what they did. They were guests, after all. That dog should be more cordial toward guests, he thought with a huff.

"He seemed angry," the noblewoman commented from the corner.

"That he did. Do you believe he actually ripped the eyes from my own men?" he asked incredulously.

"He thinks he's supreme."

"I'll show him otherwise. Once I find out why that priestess sides with him and then I'll entice her over to our side, he'll be the first that I will command her to destroy," Itachi declared.

His wife did not comment on that. She wondered why a human priestess would marry a demon, especially a demon like Sesshomaru. It just did not make any sense that she could figure on. She did consider finding out the reason behind the marriage. The information might prove valuable to her husband and she hated that bastard Sesshomaru as much as anyone else, meaning she would like to see him reduced to a pile of ashes just as much as everyone else. Yes, so, she would try to learn the secret as to why Kikyo was staying and then they would get to see the fall of the second great dog demon.

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Next time: Itachi's wife goes to pry information from Kikyo. What will she achieve?


	5. Chapter 5

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. It's a good thing I don't from what I can tell.

5-------------------------

Sesshomaru sat, pondering on his guests. He could not figure out what in the world the weasel demons were staying at his residence for. Itachi had not attempted to renegotiate the trade agreement or the road building plan. He had not tried to turn Sesshomaru into a proper ally in case of war, which was always guaranteed to happen. He was not even sneaking around the place searching for secrets of any kind. There was something amiss with the whole visit and the dog demon could not figure out what it was.

The platinum-haired male tried to find out if the men that Itachi had brought with him had been making inquiries regarding anything. They merely seemed to be enjoying the riches of his palace and taking his hospitality to the breaking point almost, getting drunk on all of his wines, gorging themselves on his meats, and some of them were in trying to take liberties with his female servants, which he would not allow. In short, they were acting as he expected, like utter fools.

The only serious problem that he had with them was the fact that a few days ago, two of the men had the nerve to come within three feet if his wife and daughter. They had not repeated the actions, possibly because he had punished the two offenders by tearing out an eye apiece from them. He could not figure out why they would do something so stupid and ill-mannered; he considered that they might just be plain empty-headed. He would prefer to be sure rather than assume since they had gone so close to his family, which was why he now had people keeping a close watch on all of his so-called guests. He just wanted an excuse to make them leave now.

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Kikyo was sitting with Rin in one of them many sitting rooms of the castle. She was leaning against the wall with her legs folded while Rin was sitting on her, lounging comfortably with her back supported by her mother's propped up leg. Rin also had her kitten with her; she was not letting Ran out of her sight because she was scared that someone might kill the feline again. The cat was curled up in Rin's stomach while she was holding a book. Rin was reading to Kikyo, which was one of their favorite pastimes.

Kikyo smiled softly as she listened to Rin read aloud almost perfectly. The girl focused mostly on the words in front of her, but she was vaguely aware of Kikyo lovingly petting her head as she read on. Rin was certain that one of the best things about having a mother was the safety that she felt when she was with Kikyo. It was like being with Sesshomaru, except with more open affection.

"Hey, Mommy, can we read again tomorrow?" Rin requested out of the blue.

"Tomorrow is your history lessons," Kikyo reminded the girl.

"After the history lessons and other stuff can we please read again?"

"I don't know if there'll be time. You know that Sesshomaru doesn't like you straying from your schedule."

Rin pouted. Ever since they had stopped wandering around and setting back into the castle, Rin noticed that Sesshomaru was almost methodic about work and schedules and everything running as they should. He disliked when she skipped her tutoring sessions and always reprimanded her when she did such things. She doubted that he knew about how boring her tutors were; it was like torture most of the time.

Kikyo smiled again because she was more than aware that tutoring was not on the girl's favorite list of things to do; Sesshomaru was aware of that too, but he stated that any child of his was going to have a fully functioning brain or going to have to leave. Rin had called his bluff when he spoke those words and he countered by calling her bluff, letting her leave. She had made it to the courtyard before Kikyo stepped in and made her return.

The child returned to reading while Kikyo continued to pet her head. The priestess glanced at the door, which was slightly open to give them a view of their favorite garden. Rin noticed where her mother's eyes were, so she stopped reading and turned her attention to the door; her cat even cast her gaze to the door.

A few seconds later, Itachi's wife was before the pair with some female servants of hers in tow. She was dressed in a very fine kimono, which was to be expected of the spouse of a lord. It was a deep purple color, matching two lightning bolt-shaped lines on her cheeks. Her skin was as pale as a cloud and her auburn hair had bright red highlights running through her long locks. She had sharp, narrow sapphire blue eyes, which was very odd for the type of demon she was.

The Lady weasel took a moment to regard Kikyo, even though the guest did have her head bowed. She looked like any other mortal wench with eyes the color of filthy dirt and hair the same color as carrion-devouring crows. She even still bore the stench of a human, even though it was clear that she was covered in Sesshomaru's musk. She could not believe that self-important dog bastard would actually lay with a human being.

"Yes, madam?" Kikyo inquired while Rin nearly sucked her teeth because of the intrusion on her time with her adopted mother. It was the second time the unruly and disturbing guests had the nerve to interrupt their time together.

"I was wondering if you and the child would not mind if I remained in your company for a while. I've grown a bit lonely as our husbands have decided to discuss politics for a moment," the noblewoman replied.

Rin turned her eyes to Kikyo and practically begged her mother to send that woman away. Surely, Kikyo felt the wicked intentions seeping from all parts of that woman's body, so she should be sent away, Rin reasoned. Kikyo noticed the look that she was getting from Rin and she knew just what those eyes were pleading for; unfortunately, it would be rude to give into her daughter's desire.

"Please, join us," Kikyo said. She did not want to play the game that she knew was going on, the noble trying to figure out what was going on and how she might be able to use Kikyo in some way or if she could trick Kikyo somehow. Political life was not the life she was made for.

The demon settled into the room after shooing her servants away with a mere cut of her eyes; there was no way that all of them would have been able to fit comfortably in that room. Rin turned her mouth up as a sign to show that she protested to the turn of events; Kikyo noticed and poked the child in the cheek to get her to stop making that face. Rin looked up at her mother, who shook her finger at the girl as a reprimand. Rin sighed and stared at her book, but she did not continue reading.

"You child is beautiful," the weasel demon commented. Both humans knew that they were merely being paid lip service.

"Thank you. Rin, thank Lady Kaori," Kikyo said.

"Do I have to?" Rin asked. It was not like the woman meant that compliment.

"Yes."

"Thank you," the child muttered rather insincerely.

"Forgive her. I have disappointed her for the day by telling her that we will not be able to read together tomorrow," Kikyo explained to the Lady to assure her that Rin's current attitude was because of something that her mother had done.

Kaori nodded and then turned her eyes to the little girl for a moment. She did look like Kikyo; although, all humans looked alike to Kaori. Their blood smelled rather different, though, indicating that they were probably not related by blood in any way. Kaori thought that such a thing was very strange.

The weasel demon figured that Sesshomaru would only claim a human child as his own because the girl was actually the child of his wife, but it would seem that Rin was not Kikyo's blood daughter. Kaori was a bit confused by that realization. Why would anyone care about a child that was not of their blood? Nothing about that dog bastard or the priestess wench was adding up as far as Kaori was concerned. She did not know what to make of the couple.

"So, the two of you are reading together?" Kaori inquired since she noticed the book that Rin was holding.

"Yes," the girl answered in a bit of a huff. Kikyo was not used to the child having such an attitude since Rin was a jovial girl almost no matter what and it was very rare for her to show her dislike of people, especially with the person around.

"Rin is reading to me," Kikyo elaborated while caressing Rin's head again to get her to clam down some.

"Oh. Is that what a child does with a mother?" Kaori inquired as if she did not know.

"That's what she does with me. I am not sure what a mother and child do together," Kikyo replied. She had unfortunately lost her mother to childbirth; she was thankful that her little sister had survived the labor, though. Anything that she knew about mothers and daughters came from observation.

"My husband and I haven't tried for children yet," Kaori commented.

Kikyo nodded, feeling no need to add to such a statement. She knew better than to discuss her and Sesshomaru having a child with Rin around. The girl became extremely hyper when her parents spoke of offspring in her presence. She had a list of all the things that she would do with her little brother or sister and it was long and she always had to run through the whole thing in full detail. Sometimes, Sesshomaru and Kikyo thought that Rin believed a baby came into the world ready to be played with; they also believed that she would be disappointed for the whole time that Kikyo was pregnant when the time came because they did not think that she would be able to take the months of waiting. And then there was the fact that it would take months for the baby to do simple things like sit up.

"I take it you and Sesshomaru will eventually have a child," Kaori said to Kikyo. She figured if they were planning children then the couple was serious about their relationship or alliance, whichever it was. That would mean trouble because it would probably be impossible to bait the woman from Sesshomaru.

"I suppose," the priestess answered in a noncommittal tone, as if it was not something that they discussed or was on their priorities list. She did wonder why the noblewoman would ask such a question. After all, what else was to be expected of a husband and wife than to produce tiny versions of themselves?

"You must relish in the fact that you are married to such a powerful and handsome lord," the weasel demon commented. She thought that small talk would get the human to open up some and give her some clue as to what she was doing with Sesshomaru.

"He is those things," Kikyo replied as if that actually answered the question. Really, if Sesshomaru was nothing more than a beggar, but still had the heart that he had (the one he did not want any one to know about) she was sure that she would love him just the same.

Kaori could tell that the priestess was purposely avoiding providing her with any information in regards to what she was doing with the dog demon. She was willing to bet that there was some underlying plot to the couple's unholy union. Sesshomaru would never do anything so bizarre without a reason because he was a calculating demon and Kaori knew that as a fact. What was the mutt planning to do with the wench, Kaori pondered. What might the priestess be planning to do? Who was using who in the relationship? She wanted to know; she promised herself that she would find out.

"Mommy, we're gonna read again tomorrow," Rin commanded in a low voice, catching the attention of their guest. Rin was not about to be cheated out of a day with one of her parents because some noblewoman wanted to be nosy.

"All right," Kikyo agreed and she leaned down, kissing the girl's head.

"She is a pushy little one," Kaori commented, trying her best to sound amused. If the girl was hers, she would have slapped the child for making orders as if she was in charge.

"That she is, but she only a child," Kikyo replied.

"Raising her before Sesshomaru came along must have been difficult for you," the demon stated.

The priestess merely smiled; she could not think of anything better to do. She could not point out how stupid the woman was for assuming that she had a child out of wedlock. Besides, if she had given birth to Rin, she would have done it at almost an impossible age; she would have been nine when Rin was born if she was the girl's birth mother.

Kaori was not sure what to make of Kikyo's expression. Rin glanced at her mother to see the minuscule smile that she was wearing. She wondered why her mother just smiled as a response. She could see that the smile had bemused their unwanted guest, so she thought that might be the reason for the expression. Did Kikyo just want to purposely perplex the demon?

"You are a very secretive woman it would seem," Kaori said to Kikyo.

"This is untrue," Kikyo replied. She was not secretive, only private, introverted to a certain extent. Besides, the demon was a stranger and possibly the wife of a lord looking to harm her dearest Sesshomaru.

"Oh, then perhaps you just have ill feelings toward me," Kaori remarked.

"This is untrue."

"Then why are you being so closed off when I am merely trying to be friendly?"

"It's my gift."

"Humor?" Kaori guessed that the woman was attempting to be witty.

"I've been told I'm poor at it," Kikyo said dryly.

"You and Daddy," Rin muttered. She was tempted to go to her adopted father, but thanks to the noblewoman in their company, she was aware that Sesshomaru was in just as bad a spot as they were.

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Sesshomaru believed himself to be somewhere below the ninth circle of Hell because he was being subjected the Itachi and his warped opinion on matters of the world. The thing that bothered Sesshomaru was that he knew the man was lying to his face and he just had to take it at the moment until he figured out what it was the man really wanted from him. He did note that the weasel lord seemed to be trying to learn about his marriage by offering advice and talking about his own union. Sesshomaru was not offering much in return, not that he ever spoke at length about anything in particular. Besides, his own people did not know much about his marriage, so he damn sure was not going to allot a possible enemy access to such information.

The dog demon wondered why the other lord was so interested in his marriage. He could not figure out the significance, except the fact that the weasel might take it as a sign of weakness that he was married to a mortal woman. He hoped the man did not make that incredibly moronic mistake. There was also the chance that the weasel thought that he might be able to use Kikyo against Sesshomaru and the dog demon thought that idea was as equally idiotic as the first. Kikyo would purify him long before she allowed the man to use her in any way.

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Next time: Itachi tries to speak with Kikyo. Will he have better luck in dealing with her?


	6. Chapter 6

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. I promise I don't.

6----------------------

Itachi and his wife were situated in their bedroom, sharing their lack of information with each other. Kaori stated that Kikyo was purposely withholding facts. She was not sure if it was because the human was being cautious or because the human simply disliked her.

Itachi told a similar tale in regards to Sesshomaru, except that he knew that Sesshomaru did not like him enough to share much. He did not even get the feel that the platinum-haired lord enjoyed having Kikyo around. Sesshomaru seemed apathetic in regards to the priestess. It was like he tolerated her presence, more than likely for her spiritual power, Itachi thought. How powerful could that wench be for Sesshomaru to keep her around, even though he did not seem to care about her?

The weasel seriously did not know what to think about what was going on. He was almost certain that Sesshomaru was keeping that human female around for some malevolent reason. He could not figure out why the priestess stayed, though. Was she just looking to slay demons and willing to serve Sesshomaru just to do that? It did not seem that way because she had not tried anything against anyone of them, even when his two bodyguards were harassing her.

He was bewildered and curious by whatever motives it was that made the priestess stay and not harm anyone in the process. She was more of a mystery than he liked. He at least could assume what was going on in Sesshomaru's head, but there was no way of him knowing what was going on in her mind. He was already aware women were mysteries point blank, but she was pushing that to the limit.

"Perhaps, I should speak with the human," Itachi suggested.

"You can try. Don't go when she's with that girl. The girl's discomfort affects that woman," Kaori informed him.

"I suppose that should be expected. The girl is her daughter, after all," he replied. He considered that the priestess might be a bit of a wanton wench to have a child and she had only just been married to Sesshomaru. There was a chance that she gave herself to Sesshomaru for physical pleasure and in exchange he got to call on her to use her powers.

"I don't believe they are blood relatives in any way. Their blood doesn't smell remotely similar," she commented.

"Then why would Sesshomaru claim the human brat as his daughter?"

"I don't know. Do you suppose those rumors from a couple of years ago were true?" she countered.

"That Sesshomaru was traveling with a little human girl? Not likely. That sadistic bastard would've killed any human that got within ten feet of him," he replied.

Kaori conceded with a nod. She did not know what to make of Rin in the picture. Everything that was going on in the dog demon's household was beyond puzzling. It was pretty much unheard of, in fact. Sure, every now and then a demon did marry a mortal like Sesshomaru had done. Sesshomaru had to be the first demon in existence to marry a priestess, though. To make matters more bizarre, Sesshomaru had adopted a little human girl that was not related to him or his bride in any way. He should not care about that child, yet he had claimed her as his daughter. It did not make any sense; nothing that was showing made any sense.

The next day, Itachi and Kaori went to find out answers; well, they hoped that they would find out some answers. Itachi decided that he would speak with Kikyo and maybe find out why she was in the demon society. He doubted that she would be as complex as Sesshomaru. She would not be able to lie to his senses if she chose to withhold the truth. He would be able to read her body language, note any changes in her smell, or hear her heart rate speed up. He would discover what he wished to know.

Itachi located Kikyo in the room that she had been in yesterday with Rin. She was quietly reading to herself and stroking the back of Rin's cat, Ran. Ran was just relaxing when the weasel lord approached the door; Kikyo cut her eyes toward the door for a moment. The kitten turned her head to the door also and hissed angrily when the aristocrat stood before them. Kikyo ran soothing fingers down the creature's back to calm it down, but that was not working.

"Milord," Kikyo said without standing up or bowing to the man.

"Milady," he replied with a slight bow.

"Can I do something for you?" she inquired. She wondered how long it would take Sesshomaru to just get fed up with providing the weasels with life's essentials and bark at them to go back home. She would second the suggestion the moment that it came up, she knew that.

"I was wondering if I might be able to ask you a few questions," he answered honestly.

"About Sesshomaru?" she guessed.

"I suppose," he replied with a smile. She figured that he was trying to appear friendly and charming, but he was succeeding in looking more conniving.

"What do you wish to know?" she asked as if she seriously planned on telling him anything at all about anything. She was not sure why the man would assume that she was stupid enough to share information with a man that it was clear her husband did not like.

"How does a priestess come to be married to such a demon lord? Surely, there must be some rule against that," he remarked, attempting to win her over with humor, she supposed.

"No, there isn't," Kikyo replied dryly.

"Well then, someone of your kind must see something very deep in Sesshomaru."

"My kind?" she echoed.

"A priestess. Someone very pure at heart," he elaborated.

Kikyo nodded to show that she understood what he meant. She doubted that a demon would comprehend human purity; she barely understood it anymore. But then again, most of the world no longer made sense to her as she was not really living in the world that she was accustomed to anymore.

"You must see something in Sesshomaru or perhaps he lied to you," Itachi said.

"Perhaps," she offered, trying to see where he was going with his statements. He could be looking to get her to reveal some secret weakness or he might just be looking to make her doubt her husband. Either way, she wished that he would leave her to her book. She did not get much leisure time with Rin and Sesshomaru around; the former wanted her to play and the latter wanted her to learn all about her new world.

"I mean, as an ordinary human being, you couldn't possibly know much about him."

"That is plausible."

"Surely he has not revealed his true nature to you."

Kikyo wondered what the point was in trying to make her curious of her husband. She did not see what he could accomplish in making her doubt her dearest. It seemed that he was trying to play a mind game with her. How sad for him since from what she could tell he did not have much mind to play with.

"You know that Sesshomaru can't possibly want you as an actual wife," Itachi commented.

"Why do you say that?" she inquired, still not bothering to look at the man at all. She kept her eyes focused on her book; she was actually still reading it. Sesshomaru and Rin had taught her to never let an annoyance get in the way of what she was doing, especially if she was reading a good story in Rin's case.

"Well, you are human."

"I've noticed."

"You must know that he would never have a child by you," the lord pointed out.

"No?" she asked in her usual plain way of speaking, so she did not sound very curious about his declaration, which he noticed.

Itachi wondered why the woman was not more interested in the things that he had to say. She should have practically demanded to know what he meant since her role as Sesshomaru's wife would be to produce his heir and as a woman, she should want nothing more than to fulfill such a role. She did not seem to care, though. He figured if he continued on then she would be interested because she could not possibly know anything about Sesshomaru if she was truly married to him. He thought that if she remained uninterested in the topic then she was using the dog demon or they were cooperating to do something nefarious.

"Sesshomaru detests hanyou children," Itachi informed the priestess.

"Does he?" she asked in a dull tone.

"Has he told you that he has a brother?"

"No," Kikyo replied honestly. Sesshomaru tried his best to not mention his brother; his brother had been the one that mentioned Sesshomaru the first time. The full demon occasionally brought up Inuyasha, but he preferred not to think about his little brother, claiming that the younger male just made his head instantly hurt. When he said such things, it truly amused Kikyo.

"Well, he does. He has a younger half brother, who is also half human. I know for a fact that he has tried to kill him," the weasel lord said.

"Really?" Kikyo replied. She felt he was downplaying it by making it seem like only once. Inuyasha would argue that it was hundreds of times, as he had a bit of a habit of exaggerating. Sesshomaru liked to point out that if he was trying to kill Inuyasha, he would have only required one attempt.

"He has openly attempted to murder his own flesh and blood because his young brother is a half-breed. Now, do you understand why he would never allow you to bare his child?" Itachi pointed out.

Kikyo nodded for lack of a better thing to do. He was not presenting her with any compelling information as to why Sesshomaru would not reproduce with her. She knew why Sesshomaru disliked his little brother and the main reason had little to do with who the younger brother's mother was. Sesshomaru's number one reason was that he truly believed that Inuyasha was a brain-dead idiot. He would not be surprised if Inuyasha's head was cracked open and his skull was found to be completely empty or full of crumbled up paper. Sesshomaru would not mind so much that Inuyasha was a moron if only he did not actually have the ability to learn, but he seemed just to choose not to do so. Inuyasha seemed to like being stupid, Sesshomaru thought.

"I'm sure Sesshomaru hasn't truly told you what kind of man he is," Itachi commented. Kikyo noticed that he disliked silence. If she sat there without saying anything, he seemed to need to fill the air with words.

"I'm sure he hasn't," Kikyo concurred. Sesshomaru more showed her what type of man he was rather than saying it in plain words. She wondered what the thin lord was going to tell her about her beloved now.

"He has done some of the worse things imaginable, worse than attempting to kill his little brother," Itachi stated.

"Has he?"

"He slaughter many of his father's most trusted samurai as soon as he came to power," the lord informed Kikyo.

The priestess knew the story behind Sesshomaru's battle; it had led to one of them reasons he detested Inuyasha so much for so long. He doubted that he had ever been so angry and disappointed than the day his father ran off and gave his life to save Inuyasha and that woman. It was the one time he found himself calling his father a fool because the man had set himself up, not only for his own demise, but the chaos that his lands broke into and he left Sesshomaru to deal with such a mess. The worse of it for Sesshomaru was that his father left him to keep the west together with a sword that did not cut. Sesshomaru still had land to rule mostly to spite his father, to show that his will was strong enough to hold together anything despite his father's irresponsible behavior.

Sesshomaru did not mean it was irresponsible of his father to go protect his offspring and woman. He thought that it was irresponsible of the so-called great dog demon to leave them in a hostile environment in the first place. He should have kept that woman with him at all times. If Kikyo was carrying his child, Sesshomaru would not let her ten feet away from him and he told her such.

"What did he do after slaughtering so many men?" Kikyo inquired as if she did not know Sesshomaru had killed everyone trying to break his father's lands apart for their own personal use.

"He subjugated the people under his rule, demons and humans alike," the weasel replied.

"How so?" she asked. From what she had seen, walking through Sesshomaru's lands and such, there was not much dissension. He was a very hands-off type of lord because he never stayed some place long enough to truly understand what people required. He always placed trustworthy and competent samurai on the lands to take care of local matters. He just made sure to keep in touch with those samurai and get many reports from them.

"Do you doubt my word?" Itachi asked. It seemed that he required time to think of reasons to back up why Sesshomaru was a tyrant.

"I merely request facts to support the statement, like any other semi-intelligent being would," she answered. She guessed that he assumed she was just outright stupid and would take everything he said as the truth.

"He has murdered hundreds of his own people," he declared.

"Has he now?" she asked. She had no doubt that Sesshomaru had a high body count on him, but she was convinced that he would never just slaughter those in his care for no reason at all. Those not in his care, well, that was another story and she was well aware of that.

"He has," Itachi replied with conviction.

"Has he ever gotten around to slaying his brother?" she inquired to feign interest in the conversation.

"I'm sure he has," he stated confidently.

Kikyo nodded again. Sesshomaru had, of course, not gotten around to killing Inuyasha. In fact, he made his little brother a samurai and gave him land as a wedding gift; Inuyasha had married that girl from the future and they trotted between times, although they seemed to be spending more and more time in the feudal era. Sesshomaru informed his brother that it was rather dimwitted of him to take a bride and have nothing to offer her. He had described the actions in a clipped tone saying, "…such shortsighted foolishness was just like Inuyasha." The half-breed took offense to the words and rudely accepted the present, making sure to use several profane words.

Kikyo thought that Sesshomaru was actually a softie when it came to the right people and as hard as he tried to deny it, Inuyasha was on that short list. The full demon constantly sent word to Inuyasha, claiming it was business, but he was really checking on the younger dog to make sure everything was all right. The brothers had to keep up the appearance that they detested each other, though.

Sesshomaru was a protector, plain and simple. Kikyo understood that was his nature and it was one of the reasons that she was with him. He did his best to make sure that those in his care were safe and secure no matter what. He just had a very odd, cold way of showing it a great deal of the time.

"Sesshomaru sounds rather malevolent," Kikyo commented.

"He is," Itachi assured her. He considered that he might be able to frighten her away from that haughty dog.

"Sir, you may find this hard to believe, but my husband has kept me well informed in his affairs," Kikyo told the weasel demon, just to watch that confident look in his beady eyes whither away like a flower in the frost.

"Meaning?"

"You can't surprise me with information, unless of course, you lie," she said, glancing up at him for the first time since he came into the room. She could see how confused he was and he did not know what to do.

"Madam, I don't lie," he huffed for lack of a better riposte. He was flustered and it was visible on his face. He did not know what make of the woman or her relationship with Sesshomaru.

"Well then, we have nothing to discuss as I know my husband's business, so you can't tell me anything new," she pointed out.

Kikyo noted that she offended Itachi with her words from the way that his body jerked ever so slightly. He hastily bid her good day and exited the room, much to her delight. She wondered what the point of his coming into the room in the first place. What was the purpose of trying to make her doubt her beloved? She could not guess what Itachi might be attempting to achieve in making her faith in Sesshomaru falter.

---------------------------------

"Kikyo, have you stayed in here all day?" Sesshomaru asked as he came by the room that the priestess and the kitten were lounging in.

"I have," she replied while Ran the cat hopped up and slowly made her way to Sesshomaru's leg. The feline rubbed against the dog demon; he did his best to ignore the creature.

"You had nothing better to do?" he asked incredulously.

"No. Something's been bothering me."

"What?" he inquired while going to sit down next to her. She leaned against him as soon as he was settled.

"Your guest has some strange interest in us."

"I know."

"Today, he seemed to try to make me think that you have not been honest with me and that you are some kind of a beast on two legs," she informed him.

"You believed him?"

"No, of course not. He didn't tell me anything I didn't already know. But, why would did he do it?" she wondered aloud.

"I'm not sure," Sesshomaru admitted. He could not see why the other lord was so interested in Kikyo. She was only a human woman, after all. What could they want her for?

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Next time: Kikyo is stalked by Itachi while Sesshomaru is harassed by Kaori. How much longer will the dog demon put up with this?


	7. Chapter 7

Still don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin.

7------------------

Sesshomaru pondered on the issue that had been bothering his wife, which was why in the hell was his guest so interested in Kikyo? He could only think that Itachi wanted to use Kikyo against him, but he could not think of how the man might try that. It was not like Kikyo was going to go along willing with anything that the weasel wanted to try and it was not possible for her to be forced into anything; she was just too strong-willed to be forced into things by such weak demons. Even still, he decided that he would keep an eye on his wife and his guests to make sure that nothing happened.

The dog demon watched his wife as she and their adopted daughter moved about the castle. When they had first come to stay at the palace, Sesshomaru had frequently studied Kikyo and Rin when they were together. It relaxed him to see them together, enjoying each other's company. He would make sure that he got to take pleasure in such a sight for as long as possible.

"Milord," Kaori said as she approached Sesshomaru, much to his dismay.

"Milady," Sesshomaru replied, turning his attention to her and away from his family. He was annoyed with her and she was just standing there for three seconds.

"I have not seen much of you during this visit," she commented.

The guests had been in Sesshomaru's home for over a week and he had not seen much of Lady Kaori, somewhat on purpose. He was thankful to not see much of her; he knew her better than he knew her husband. She was a viper in weasel clothing, but he did not expect anything less from a noblewoman. No one was to be trusted in the upper class, but he knew that a man should always be extra-cautious around a woman, whether she was wed or not. A woman's motives were always top secret, sometimes they did not even make sense, and her methods were infinite along with being underhanded and vicious a great deal of the time.

"You are still very handsome, milord," Kaori said with a small smile.

Sesshomaru merely looked at the Lady. She expected such from him. He had never been much for verbal communication. She realized that his wife was similar to him in that regard, being just as tightlipped as the indifferent dog demon. Kaori wondered if the similarities between Sesshomaru and Kikyo were deeper than just choosing specific times to speak. She actually considered that the couple might be married because they at least liked each other and they could get along. The notion almost disgusted her.

"I wonder, you have taken a human wife and claimed a human as your child. Will the little girl also inherit your lands?" Kaori asked. If he was going to give that little monkey his lands, she and her husband should just wait for him to die…or speed up the process in someway.

The golden-eyed lord did not respond because the answer to that question was hardly any of the woman's business. He had not even considered naming Rin his heir; the girl just was not suited for ruling anything. She did not have the personality for it, but he felt that she would be a great asset to his heir in regards to advice and such.

"Are you just not talking to me, milord?" Kaori practically purred at him.

"I'm merely waiting for something worth my answering," he replied in a dull tone to express his disinterest in her.

"You will never change," she stated in an amused tone. He was like a block of ice for as long as she could recall. Women used to swear he was either completely interested in other men or dead from the way he did not react to their advances.

"Indeed," he concurred.

"You took a wife so quickly and quietly, Lord Sesshomaru. We have only just heard about it in our lands."

"Some still have not heard," he pointed out. He was not going to advertise his marriage. It was not anyone's business and he hated that so many people swore up and down that his marriage was their business. If he wanted people to know about the union, he would have invited them to what he thought was an irksome event for most of the day.

"Are you…ashamed?" she asked with a taunting smile.

"I don't shame," he answered.

"No, that's right. I forgot that you're perfect. So, this act was a calculated, thought out move of perfection," she reasoned.

The platinum-haired male did not reply. Why were these people so interested in his marriage? He considered that they might foolishly assume that he was weak for marrying a human woman or that he was losing his mind, which might explain their visit. They more than likely wanted to see which it was first hand. He hated knowing that they were more than likely plotting to try and use his beloved against him. He silently vowed that they were going to regret whatever it was that they tried.

"I wonder why you would take a mortal mate considering all of the demon females offered to you," Kaori said.

"What I do is none of your concern," Sesshomaru replied.

Kaori smiled slightly. "You're so defensive, even now," she commented while reaching out to actually touch him. He dodged the contact and stepped away from her grasp.

"You're overstepping your boundaries," he pointed out in an apathetic tone, as if he did not care.

She smiled again and pulled her hand back. "Forgive me, milord," she apologized.

Sesshomaru waved it off and decided to dismiss himself from the lady's presence. He did not wish to bother with Kaori or whatever games she wanted to play. He turned his attention back to his wife and daughter only to discover that they were gone. He sighed and walked off without bidding the noblewoman farewell.

---------------------------------------

Kikyo was following behind Rin, who was chasing a goat. Kikyo could not believe the energy that Rin had because she was doing a good job of keeping up with the little goat, even after many minutes of running. The priestess was not too sure how much longer she would last following them, though; she was also curious as to where Rin got the goat from. She recalled her daughter claimed to have saved the animal, but she was not sure if that was the total truth since Rin had a habit of telling stories from how she perceived things to be rather than how they really were.

While keeping up with Rin and making sure that the child did not cause any trouble, Kikyo noticed something. She spied that Itachi was following them. He was skulking around in the shadows, probably thinking that her human senses were too dull to take note of him. She could not help wondering what the man wanted.

Kikyo disliked that the weasel lord was creeping around with her daughter playing in the area. She was very tempted to fire an arrow at him, not to hit him, but to discourage him from following around her child. As he continued on, the idea became even more tempting and the notion of not hitting him was fading from her mind.

Itachi did not think that he had been spotted; after all, he was following two mortals and one of them was more concerned over a goat than anything else, so he continued on. He wanted to see if he might find the reason for the priestess being in the castle, for her being married to Sesshomaru. He was not seeing anything, though, except that she was like a nursemaid for that barbarian child in her keep.

The priestess seemed to disappear from Itachi's view as he pondered why she would be with Sesshomaru. He was baffled by her seemingly supernatural powers because she had so easily vanished from his sight. He turned around to go find her and nearly walking right into Kikyo.

"Milord," Kikyo greeted him coldly. Itachi took a few steps away from her; she guessed it was because of what Sesshomaru had done to the last weasels to get too close.

"Milady," he replied.

"Please, call me Kikyo," she requested.

"That's quite all right, Lady Kikyo."

She shook her head; apparently, he was a coward. He probably did not want to chance her husband hearing him address her informally. Sesshomaru probably would not take kindly to such a thing.

"Can I help you, sir?" Kikyo inquired because she wanted to hear the reason he would give for stalking her and Rin.

"No, I am fine."

"Are you sure?"

"I am."

"Perhaps you are lost," she offered him something to use since he obviously was not one for thinking on his feet.

"No," he objected. She made it sound like he was incompetent.

"Then what brings you to this part of the castle?" she asked as if she did not know. The problem was that they were in a courtyard that Sesshomaru had closed to off to everyone, guests included, except for his family. It was a place that he, Kikyo, and Rin could go to be together and alone. Only one other person was allowed to enter and that was Jakken and Sesshomaru specified that the little toad had better be bearing special news if he did enter the family sanctuary.

"That's what I would like to know," Sesshomaru commented as he seemed to appear out of nowhere behind Itachi, causing the weasel lord to leap from surprise and fear if the dog demon's nose was right.

"Lord Sesshomaru," Itachi said.

"What is he doing here?" the platinum-haired male asked his wife.

"Leaving, I'm sure," she replied and Itachi took the hint. He bowed to the couple and quickly made his way out of the place.

Sesshomaru watched the shorter male leave and growled under his breath. He then turned his attention to Kikyo and took her in his arms. He noticed something was off about her and he sniffed the air around her. She knew what the problem was.

"The scent is my fault. I sneaked up on him," Kikyo explained. Perhaps, she should have shot the weasel; it would have bothered her husband less had she done that.

"What was he doing here?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Following us."

Sesshomaru frowned. "I dislike how interested this man is in you. I think I shall send him on his way in a few days."

"I won't object in the slightest. I don't trust him and I have already considered shooting him for sneaking around with Rin here."

Sesshomaru was close to laughing. "I can't have you slaying our noble guests, so I shall send him away soon. Is that good enough for you?"

"As long as he keeps away from our child," she answered.

"And people think I'm overprotective," he remarked.

Kikyo only cut him a glance. She turned his eyes to Rin, who was apparently having a great time with her tiny goat. Sesshomaru turned to regard Rin and saw her playing with the beast. He sighed and shook his head; Rin certainly was a free spirit and he had no idea what he was supposed to do with her.

"You know, I used to suspect that there was something wrong with Rin," Sesshomaru whispered to make sure the child did not hear his words.

"Because she is happy?" Kikyo guessed.

"Openly happy."

"She appreciates life and what it has brought her."

"Death to her kin, beaten, and then killed by filthy wolves?" he asked. He did not see why Rin would be happy with cards life dealt her.

"Rebirth thanks to a kind demon lord, safety, warmth, and love. You would be surprised how little a human requires for happiness," Kikyo commented with a small smile.

"I think that it's only you and Rin."

"Be that as it may, we are happy."

"And to me, that's what matters," Sesshomaru replied while leaning down to gently kiss her mouth.

--------------------------------

Next time: The "guests" are given the boot. What will they do once Sesshomaru kicks them out?


	8. Chapter 8

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin.

8-----------------------------

Itachi was aware that Sesshomaru would no longer tolerate his presence long before the dog demon made it known through out the castle, which was why the weasel lord put a plan in motion. He had not come to understand why Sesshomaru had married to the priestess, but he would not allow that mutt to keep her. Itachi would have her no matter what and force her to kill that egotistical dog no matter what too. He just could not allow Sesshomaru to keep such a powerful and likely dangerous human in his custody.

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Rin waved to the exiting party of weasel demons. She was beyond happy to see them go and it was clear from the huge grin on her face. She excitedly bid them farewell from a balcony in the castle. She was clutching her one-eared kitten to her chest and the injured creature seemed just as happy to see them go.

"Nobody'll interrupt our time with Mommy and Daddy now, Ran. Isn't that great?" Rin asked the cat while trotting off to go find one of her parents and just enjoy being with one of them with the knowledge that no weasel would be lurking around.

Rin dashed through the castle, searching for her parents. She came across them in a room, but she did not go in because she could hear them speaking to each other. She considered being rude and just bursting in to demand their attention, but she decided against that. She would be good for once and wait. She parked herself against a wall opposite the room and busied herself by caressing her kitten, who seemed to relish in the acknowledgment.

"Do you have a date with Rin?" Sesshomaru asked Kikyo because he could smell the girl and her accursed cat outside the room.

"She more than likely wants to spend time with us. Are you done?" Kikyo inquired.

"I suppose. I do have men following Itachi to make sure that he goes home and stays there," he informed her.

Kikyo nodded to show that she understood and she appreciated knowing that fact. She was glad that the guests were gone because she had been very close to purifying a great deal of them because they were constantly stalking her, especially when Rin was around her. They made her very uncomfortable and that was putting it mildly.

Sesshomaru reached out and caressed Kikyo's cheek to put her more at ease. She leaned into his touch and kissed his palm. He almost smiled, but he caught himself. He then stood up and she followed suit. They exited the room, causing Rin to grin while climbing to her feet. She hopped right in front of her parents.

"Must you carry this kitten everywhere?" Sesshomaru asked Rin. He had no idea where she found the little miscreant, but he wished that she had left it there.

"Uh-huh!" Rin answered enthusiastically while handing Ran over to Kikyo. Once Kikyo secured the cat, Rin then climbed into Sesshomaru's arms. Kikyo laughed while the lord looked absolutely baffled by the girl's outrageous behavior.

Sesshomaru looked to Kikyo to hopefully get some sort of rationalization for why Rin was climbing on her him like she was a little monkey. Kikyo smiled a bit; he really was clueless when it came to children.

"She is happy, beloved," Kikyo informed him to assure him that Rin had not gone stark, raving mad.

"Fine," he sighed while making sure to hold Rin up.

"You're happy too," Kikyo teased and planted a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth.

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Sesshomaru would admit that he was happy that the weasel demons were gone, but he felt even better once he was assured that they had gone home. He hoped that they stayed there. He was still on guard, wondering why they had been so interested in his marriage and his mate in particular. He knew that they were scheming, but life went on as usual and Sesshomaru had to let go of the weasels as he received a message from the southern tip of his lands.

"Kikyo," Sesshomaru said.

"Yes?" she asked. They were supposed to be sleeping, but Sesshomaru seemed to discuss issues when and wherever.

"I've got to leave here tomorrow."

"Why?" she inquired.

"There are bandits terrorizing the south," he informed her. It was actually the weakest link in his lands. The man that was in charge was ancient, but it was also the most peaceful place, so he did not think too much of it.

"Human bandits?"

"Yes," he answered, which let her know one of the reasons why he would not be taking her along with him.

"What of the samurai you have stationed there?"

"They were killed," he answered as if it was nothing.

"Oh," was all she could manage.

"I shouldn't be gone too long. It would be best for you to stay here anyway. Someone has to make sure everything here continues to run smoothly," he pointed out.

"That would be my duty, would it not?" she asked with a hint of humor in her voice. She was supposed to take care of the household, but it was not something that she had been practicing, nor had it been something that he encouraged.

"I believe so," he replied with some humor in his voice also.

Kikyo only cast her husband a simple glance before cuddling up to him. Sesshomaru did not protest to the soft, warm body pressing against him. In fact, he considered taking sleep from her, but he doubted that would do any good. He would just think about her and her delicious body for the whole time that he was gone and it would distract him from his duties. He would just have to wait until he got back to keep her up late at night.

Kikyo was a bit curious as to why Sesshomaru had not practically pounced on her; it was something that he did almost daily. She did gather that he probably did not want to get worked up since he would be leaving in the morning and he would need his strength. If the matter was not so serious, she would have teased him about it because she knew that it amused him when she was playful.

The dog demon did like it when his wife was a little mischievous because she often seemed shy around him when it came to their being intimate. He recalled when they were first wed; she had been so timid the night that they consummated their bond. He was not sure if her behavior was human prudishness or if it was merely her, but he made it his mission to work such a nature out of her. He had made it a habit to lay with her at least once every night until she at least stopped covering herself when he undressed her. She had only recently ceased to try and hide from him.

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Sesshomaru left his home, heading south. He was confident that Kikyo would be able to take care of the affairs around the castle, even though he had never left her alone at the castle before. She would have to learn how to command their household anyway; after all, with the times that they lived in, who knew when he was going to leave to fight in a war or something else. She needed to be seen as the one in charge in his absence.

The dog demon tried not to think about Kikyo as he traveled to the southern tip of his lands. He immediately saw the destruction that the bandits were reaping on his territory. The sky was blackened with smoke and ash from the fires. The air was thick from the smothering grey cloud covering the land like blanket of soot. He frowned at the sight; whoever it was that had done such a thing would pay in blood.

Sesshomaru detested when anyone took liberties in his lands and disturbed the peace of the people that were living under him. He looked at it as deliberate disrespect toward him, even if the people attacking did not know that the lands were his. How dare someone have the gall to test him and try to terrorize his people? He would not stand for it.

The lord pulled his sword, Toukijin. He went after any bandits that caught his eye with swift, powerful vengeance. He kept his eyes and nose open to hopefully spot the leader of the foolish group of malcontents. He wanted answers as to why they were doing something so incredibly stupid.

The platinum-haired demon calmly cut through the idiotic highwaymen with no thought of mercy on his part. He caught sight of a regally dressed man on a horse and decided that he was the man that Sesshomaru was looking for. He charged the man and cut his horse out from underneath him; all the man saw was a white and silver blur go by him before his horse cried out. The beast collapsed and the man hit the ground hard like a crate that was tossed from a wagon. Sesshomaru marched up to the man and put his sword to the human's throat.

"What exactly do you think you're doing?" Sesshomaru demanded to know in such a calm tone that his whole being seemed malicious.

"Don't kill me!" the man begged.

"Why are you here?"

"We were paid to come here," the man confessed easily.

"Paid? By whom?" he inquired. Who would pay men to ravage his lands?

"I don't know!" the man insisted.

Sesshomaru frowned. "Don't try my patience," he warned the man. He could always send out people to discover who paid men to attack his property.

"He didn't give a name. He just paid us and told us to attack this area on his command. He said that if we did a good job, he would let us have this land when it was under his control," the man explained.

The dog demon's frown deepened. Who was attempting to take over his territory? Why would they start with the south? He understood that it was a weak point, but he could crush anything in the south, especially if he called on the assistance of the lord that bordered his land because that lord would perceive the attack as a threat to him since it would be too close to his lands for comfort. Unless, of course, it was that lord that had done the attacking, but that did not add up because he would have used his army and not some group of dimwitted human bandits.

"This person that approached you, what did he look like?" Sesshomaru asked the trembling man facing the tip of his sword.

"He was covered from head to toe."

Sesshomaru was growing angry because the frightened human was proving very useless to him. He decided to rid himself of the pitiful soul and finish his work. What was going on? What was the point in hiring people to assault the border of his land? Then he thought, what if it was not an attack on his lands really, considering how easy it was to halt, just a ploy to him down south? He was actually quite far from home now and that might have been the point.

"Could someone be looking to attack my home?" he wondered and then he gasped. "Kikyo."

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Kikyo was resting in bed while thinking about the job that she was doing in her husband's absence. She felt that she was doing an adequate job of taking care of the castle without Sesshomaru being around. Still, she hoped that he returned soon.

Suddenly, she felt a presence in the room with her, causing her to open her eyes. She shot up from bed and tried to grab for her weapons, but was tackled by someone that she could sense was a demon before she could manage anything. Another assailant quickly bound the priestess' hands before she had a chance to purify them. They gagged her once they were certain that her hands were secure around her back and then they tied her ankles together. They exited the room with her after throwing a white dust around the room.

Kikyo was carried out into the woods and flung haphazardly into the back of a wagon. She turned and saw that Rin was laying in the wagon; the child was bound and gagged also. Rin wiggled over to Kikyo and rested against her for reassurance that everything was going to be all right despite the fact that they were being abducted. Rin reminded herself that nothing could hurt her if she was with one of her parents and the determined look in Kikyo's chocolate eyes did not lead the girl to think otherwise. Kikyo was not sure who was behind the kidnapping, but she was certain that they were going to pay.

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Next time: The reason why a person shouldn't kidnap Kikyo and Rin.


	9. Chapter 9

So, I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. Enjoy the fic anyway.

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Kikyo and Rin were still bound as they were dragged into a castle. They were taken into a room where Kikyo was flung roughly at the feet of the lord in charge. Rin whimpered because of the treatment of her mother, but the priestess hardly made a noise from the impact with the wood. Kikyo looked up when she realized that she knew the aura that she was sensing.

"You," Kikyo said venomously as she beheld the Lord Itachi. She was going to curse that weasel bastard until the day that she died if he dared harm Rin. Should he hurt her child in any way, his life would not even be measurable in minutes.

"Good to see you, Lady Kikyo," Itachi said with a proud, sinister smirk on his thin face. It seemed in her opinion that he was unaware that he just signed his own death warrant.

"What do you want?" she demanded to know.

Itachi smirked even wider. "Nothing much, just those lovely western lands," he informed her.

"And you think stealing me and Rin will get you such a foolish dream? You are quite the weak-willed fool. I had no idea people came as stupid as you," she commented.

Itachi growled because of the insult. He leaned down and slapped the raven-haired priestess with enough force to bruise her cheek. Kikyo hardly made a noise when the blow landed. She was moved back because of the power that he put into the hit.

"Don't hit my mother!" Rin ordered; she was being held back by one of the kidnappers. She wished that she knew how to channel her spiritual energy through her hands like Kikyo because if she did, man, she would put it on all of the demons right now.

"Now, Lady Kikyo, since you know what I want, I'll tell you how you can help me attain my dreams," Itachi said.

"You want my help?" Kikyo asked incredulously. The lord had to simply be out of his mind if he thought that she would assist him in any way, shape, or form. She would never betray her dearest Sesshomaru, never.

"I do. I want you to purify Sesshomaru."

Kikyo could not help laughing. He wanted her to purify Sesshomaru? Oh, the man had to completely out of his ever-loving mind. He had to be totally, utterly, stark raving mad. He would have to kill her before she considered doing anything for him.

"Why are you laughing, priestess?" Itachi demanded to know, thinking that she was mocking him.

"I assumed that you were telling a joke," she replied. "I know I found it quite humorous."

Itachi growled again because the woman was not taking him seriously. He considered striking her again, but that did not seem to affect her, so he decided on something else. He motioned to one of his guards with his hand and the demon brought Rin to the lord. Itachi yanked the girl to him and then flung her to his wife's feet. Rin grunted a bit upon landing.

"Leave Rin alone," Kikyo ordered in a very calm tone, which should have served as a warning to anyone thinking about injuring the girl.

Lady Kaori leaned down and grabbed the child by the neck. Rin whimpered while the demon woman put her painted claws to the girl's throat. Kaori then turned her eyes to stare at Kikyo and she smirked wickedly at the priestess.

"My claws are just like Sesshomaru's, extremely poisonous. It is not a peaceful death to die by my claws. If you continue to be stubborn, then I guess that I will just have to slay your child," Kaori informed the bound priestess.

"If you kill my daughter, not only will you no longer have any leverage against me, but I will have no choice to kill you," Kikyo riposted easily. The look in her eyes was not that of a frightened mother, but of a determined, wrathful warrior. She wished that these weasels would do something so ignorant as to murder Rin because she would slaughter every weasel demon in the territory after that.

Itachi noticed the look in Kikyo's cocoa eyes and he gulped, knowing that he might be looking his death in the face. The priestess' body backed up the expression in her eyes. Her heart rate had not accelerated from nervousness, nor did her body go rigid from fear. Kikyo did not waver in any way to show that she did not mean her words.

"I'll give you some time to think about it," Itachi said to Kikyo.

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Sesshomaru returned home as quickly as possible. He did not know what was going on, but he was certain that it had something to do with him being away from home. It was nighttime by the time that he got back and the first place that he went was Rin's room; he worried more about Rin than Kikyo for the simple fact that Rin was a little girl and Kikyo was a grown, trained, and powerful priestess.

The dog demon discovered that Rin's room was empty. He growled as he tried to catch the scent of her or anyone else that might have been in the room. He could not smell anything at all, though. It was like the room was sterile. Instead of assuming the worst immediately, he considered that Rin might be sleeping in the room with Kikyo. There were a couple of times when Rin liked to crawl into bed with them and just reassure herself that she was not alone, that she was cared for, that there were people that adored her. He did not understand it himself, but it was Rin, so he allowed it.

Sesshomaru turned and headed to his bedroom. He did not like that he was not picking up any signs of life from his chambers. He did not hear any breathing and he had not caught Kikyo's scent. When he made it to the room, he saw that it was as empty as a fresh grave. The same sterile smell that coated Rin's bedroom was glazed over his chambers like honey on a pastry, which lead him to know that someone was looking to mask their scent.

"I am going to personally tear out the spines of anyone that was involved in this," Sesshomaru quietly decided.

The silver-haired male sniffed around his room, but he did not find a hint of who had stolen his wife and child. He decided to go outside to scan the area for Kikyo's or Rin's scent. He did lock onto that sterile smell, but it was going in several directions. That was clever, he thought, but whoever had done such a thing was not clever enough. Through the annoying sterilized scent, he could smell his wife and child; they seemed to have worked up a sweat, struggling against their kidnappers undoubtedly. He took off in the direction that his mate and child were taken.

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Kikyo and Rin were left bound in a cell with stone walls; they bet that it was a cave that was left when the castle was built. Rin was curled up next to her mother for assurance that everything would be fine. Kikyo was humming softly to help ease Rin's nerves. The priestess guessed that they would be left there until Itachi could think of a better threat, a better way to use Rin against her. She would rather not be there when he came up with a good idea, or at least she would rather have her hands free.

"Are you all right, now, Rin-chan?" Kikyo asked quietly.

"Uh-huh," the child answered. She was a bit shaken because she knew that those weasels were going to try to use her to get her mother to hurt her father.

"Then you're going to have to free your hands."

"Okay."

"I have an arrow hidden in my yukata. If you move your hands to your front, then you should be able to reach it."

Rin nodded. The child happened to be double-jointed, but the men that tired her ropes did not know that. She easily held her hands over her head and moved them to her chest. She then turned to Kikyo.

"The arrow is at my left side," the adult said. She was a bit paranoid sleeping alone in the castle, which was why she had the arrow tucked away in her nightclothes. She had been sleeping with bow at her side and an entire quiver of arrows at the other side. When those ninjas grabbed her, they did not give her time to gather her weapons. The arrow was the last resort and she had not even had the chance to use that.

Rin reached into her mother's yukata and Kikyo jumped. Rin pulled her hands back. "Did I do something wrong?" the child asked.

"No, your hands are just cold. I didn't brace myself for it," Kikyo explained.

The girl nodded to show that she understood. She reached back into the yukata and discovered the arrow. She liberated the weapon and did not need to be told to work her hands free of the ropes. It took a while since the ropes were thick and tied around a third of her forearms. She then cut her feet free before working on her mother's bonds.

"What now, Mommy?" Rin inquired.

"Let's see if we can get the guard's attention and hopefully to open the door. Sit back down as if you're still tied up," Kikyo instructed the girl.

Rin nodded, wondering what her mother had planned. She sat back down at Kikyo's side. She curled her legs behind her to hide the fact that her feet were no longer bound. Kikyo put her hands behind her to keep up the illusion that her hands were together.

"Excuse me," Kikyo called to the door, knowing that there was someone nearby. She sensed a demon, but he actually seemed to be a bit far for a guard. It took a moment for him to respond.

"What?" he huffed.

"My daughter is cold. Might she have a blanket?" Kikyo requested.

"No," he answered plainly.

Kikyo chuckled a bit and shook her head. She glanced down at Rin, who appeared to be wondering what they would do now since the guard was not coming. The priestess smiled to show that she had other ways of getting the guard to open the door.

"Excuse me," Kikyo called again after a few minutes.

"What now?" the guard asked in a gruff tone.

"My yukata is coming undone. Please, could you fix it for me, so that I might avoid becoming sick?" she requested.

"What?" he inquired to be certain that he had heard correctly.

"My yukata is coming undone. Please, could you fix it for me," she repeated. Apparently, she had gotten his attention with that.

Rin looked up at her mother; Kikyo shook her head as a response as if telling the girl not to think on it. The door opened seconds later and a typical weasel demon entered the room. He smirked when he saw that Kikyo had not been lying about her yukata; Rin had loosened it by accident when reaching for the arrow. The demon began grinning like a pervert when he saw the curve of her milky breast was visible.

"Mommy," Rin said when the guard started reaching for the exposed flesh.

"It's all right, Rin," Kikyo assured the child.

Kikyo knew that the child was worried about the lewd demon actually touching her, but that was not in the plan. Only one man would ever touch her so intimately and that man certainly was not with them at the moment. Kikyo took hold of the guard's wrist like a striking viper. He only had a chance to gasp in surprise before her powers were circulating through his system. She shoved him away from her when he went limp. She climbed to her feet and Rin followed suit.

"Getting out of here isn't going to be so easily," Kikyo said mentally because she knew that almost all castles were built like mazes to confuse enemies and people that did not belong. She had to do something, though because she was not going to wait for that lunatic Itachi to think of some way to use Rin against her.

Kikyo fixed her yukata as she walked to the door to see if she could plot the course that they had taken when being brought into the room. Rin busied herself by grabbing any small, loose pebbles in the room. Kikyo was pretty sure that she recalled the route that they had taken, so she was confident to leave the room and make a run for it.

"Rin, come and make sure that you stay behind me," Kikyo cautioned the child.

"Yes, ma'am," the little girl answered.

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Sesshomaru arrived at the destination that the trail ended. He scowled when he saw where he was standing; he was going to personally skin and behead Itachi. He would not even use Toukijin when he did it, he would behead that skinny bastard with his claws. He would then use Toukijin's energy to destroy all traces of Itachi's filthy body. Yes, that seemed like a very accepted arrangement. So, now all he had to do was reach that dead man, but, before that, he did have to save his favorite ladies.

The dog demon moved about the castle searching for some hint of Kikyo or Rin. He stalked through the castle as if he was the shadow of death itself. It did not take long for guards to take note of him and attack him as he was an intruder. Sesshomaru calmly countered the attack with the Toukijin. He cut down anyone that came to battle him; he thought that they were fools for throwing their lives away for a coward.

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Kikyo and Rin's escape was no longer as quiet as it had been when they started out. Apparently, they were to be taken alive because none of the guards that came at them attempted to draw a sword. Rin and Kikyo had been using the rocks that the girl had picked up as weapons. They were not using the stones in any ordinary sense; they were charging the pebbles with spiritual energy like they would with arrows. The rocks turned into deadly projectiles in the hands of Kikyo and Rin.

By the time the two humans made it to a courtyard, they were out of stones. The guards seemed to think that since the females were out of ammo that meant that they were helpless; they were just as dangerous without weapons as they were with them. The demons were careful around Kikyo, knowing that a simple touch from her could mean their demise. They did try to go for Rin and that turned out to be just as bad an idea.

The little girl was being trained in several forms self-defense, both hand to hand and weapons, and she was no slouch in the areas; they were about the only things that she thought were fun that her tutors taught her. She could hit with enough force to daze her opponents, letting Kikyo have enough time to get hold of the stunned men. Kikyo finished off whatever Rin started. They continued their flight, but after a few minutes of running, Kikyo realized that they were not going the right way; everything just looked alike. Castle architects were sadists, she was certain of that.

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Sesshomaru could smell his wife and daughter very clearly. He could sense some panic from them; they were that close to him. He was done playing around now. His eyes bled over crimson and his teeth grew. He transformed into his giant dog form and ripped through everything in sight to find his family.

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Rin noticed a white blur in the sky out of the corner of her eye for a brief moment. It looked like a tail tip to her. She turned to her mother, hoping to get her attention and direct her toward the snow-colored blur. Kikyo was a bit busy though, protecting the girl and Rin saw the tail again.

"Daddy?" Rin wondered. "Daddy!" the child hollered in joy.

Sesshomaru, having very good hearing, heard Rin's shout. He rushed to where her voice was, tearing down anything in his way and his acidic saliva melted anything on his sides. Everything in his wake was either stomped or dissolved and he could care less than nothing. He made it to Kikyo and Rin as they were being backed down a dead-end.

The dog demon changed back into his human form, silent as an ant while doing so. He then charged into the group of guards, cutting them all down without hesitating. Many of them did not even have time to gasp.

"Sesshomaru," Kikyo said in a slightly stunned voice. She had been too busy with the weasel demons to sense his presence at all.

"Beloved," Sesshomaru greeted her in his usual tone.

"Daddy!" Rin cheered and she charged him to leap into his arms. Sesshomaru grunted when her weight landed on him.

"She is happy?" Sesshomaru asked Kikyo.

"Of course," she answered.

"Itachi was behind this?" he inquired just to be sure.

"Yes," she confirmed.

Sesshomaru frowned; he was going to get that coward. He was going to do some very unspeakable things to that man. No one, but no one played around with the great dog demon like that grubby, little weasel worm.

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Next time: Sesshomaru and Kikyo have a moment before being interrupted by more enemies. Can't these two catch a break!


	10. Chapter 10

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. Seriously, I don't.

10------------------------

Sesshomaru was more than vexed by the fact that Itachi escaped him and thus was still alive. He had fled his castle while Sesshomaru was taking care of his minions. The dog demon was frustrated and the only thing that would sate his irritation would be to find Itachi and split him open vertically; he was fairly certain that was the only thing that would relax his tense body and aggravated mind.

"Beloved," Kikyo murmured as she sat behind Sesshomaru.

"Yes?" he asked, even though he was aware that she was going to try to loosen him up. All day long she kept going about how he needed to calm down because being worked up would not accomplish anything.

"Why must you allow things to fester like this?"

"I don't…." he trailed off.

"You don't?" she asked because she knew that he was not finished answering her question.

"I don't like the fact that a man that had the gall to kidnap you and Rin is still free and capable of walking and talking. He might try it again."

"We were merely caught by surprise. We underestimated him, but we won't again," she pointed out.

"No, we won't," he concurred, but he was not totally agreeing with her and she knew that.

Kikyo disliked her husband being so tense because of her mistake. She had been the one that allowed those weasels into the castle and she had let her guard down enough for them to take her captive. She had to do something to take his mind off of her miscalculation.

She reached out, almost hesitating, but continued on. She wrapped her arms around his chest and pressed herself against his back. He was astounded by her actions and she could tell because of the way that his body tightened for just a moment; he was not used to her being so forward.

Kikyo tended to be shy around Sesshomaru, even now. He was the one that usually initiated contact between them. He often thought that she was frightened of offending him in some manner, as if she was unsure of how he wanted to be touched and she did not desire to risk trying. He smiled a bit because she could be a bit silly sometimes; he doubted that there was a way for her to offend him. He put his clawed hand on her smaller ones and sighed contently as she rubbed her cheek into his shoulder. Taking his noise as a good sign, Kikyo continued to caress him.

The dog demon began to make small whimpering sounds as his wife's hands moved around his body, rubbing him softly, tenderly, almost bashfully. It took a couple of minutes, but Sesshomaru forgot what had been bothering him completely while Kikyo moved her body against his back. He knew his problem had something to do with his wife and child, but with his beloved creating friction against him it was difficult to focus on anything aside from her. Was she trying to distract him? He could not recall if that had been her original plan.

"Beloved…" Sesshomaru breathed the simple word out.

"Yes?" Kikyo asked.

"What was I doing before you came in here?" he inquired curiously.

"What does it matter? I'm here now and you're going to pay attention to me," she replied.

"I am?"

"Are you not?" she asked skeptically. She was fully aware that she had his complete attention.

Sesshomaru only whimpered again as she rubbed up against his back. Kikyo was encouraged by the noise coming from him and she thought that she might try to assert herself a bit more because she was aware that he liked her to be more active in their physical relationship. She figured as long as she was being assertive and trying to get him to relax, she might as well explore and try to make herself comfortable with touching him.

Kikyo moved her right hand to his chest and into his haori. She touched his flesh and moved her hand over his heart. She could feel his heart beating under her palm as well as hear it because she had her head against her back. He felt so good, she noted in the back of her mind. She typically did not take the time to just feel him.

The raven-haired woman would never say so out loud, but she was generally very nervous with Sesshomaru when they were physically affectionate. She never focused on herself, only him, hoping that he was enjoying what was happening. She always thought that she might do something to his disliking, so she put her all into making sure not to make a mistake; it left her not doing much because she was too anxious. She just was not experienced in the matter and felt that it would be best if she did not try to do anything.

"Keep going," Sesshomaru insisted because she had paused too long at his heart for his liking. He wanted to see where she was going with her new found freedom.

She laughed a bit; apparently, he had totally forgotten what he was fuming about not even ten minutes ago. She eased his haori from his torso. He remained perfectly still as her fingers shyly roamed his bare, pale chest. He wanted to tell her more, but he thought that might startle her and then she would stop, which he seriously would detest. He figured that what was going on right now was a true test of his self-control.

Kikyo wondered what she was supposed to do when touching him with her hands was not enough and gently grinding against him was not enough. What would he do? What did he generally do? Oh, yes, now she remembered what he did when his hands were not enough anymore. She tentatively brushed her lips against his shoulder blades. His breath nearly hitched, but he remained still to avoid bothering her in any way. He really wanted her to continue if she was going to bring her mouth into matters. She kissed all over his back and then began wondering what she should do next.

What would Sesshomaru do, Kikyo asked herself. He would have probably pounced on her by now, she considered, amusing herself with that thought. Well, she was not about to just jump on him. She desired to just keep experiencing him and hopefully distracting him from his anger. So, what now?

Sesshomaru gasped slightly when he felt what she was doing next. He could not help himself because she had just planted a wet kiss on his neck and allowed her tongue to linger for a long moment, as if she had been tasting him. He had not expected something like that from her. She halted her actions when he gasped.

"Sesshomaru?" she asked in an unsure voice.

"Keep going," he encouraged her.

Kikyo nodded and she kissed his neck again. She sat up a bit after his neck was not enough. She kissed his cheek and he took the hint to turn his head to allow her to kiss his mouth. Now that he moved, his self-control was done. Kikyo was about to be pounced on and she was not expecting it.

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The dog demon lay still in bed; Kikyo was curled up next to him. She was contemplating sleep, but it appeared that he was going to stay awake. She hoped that he was not starting to think about Lord Itachi again because if he was, then she was going to have to distract him again. It took a lot of energy to distract him.

"Do you smell that?" Sesshomaru asked out of the blue. Kikyo inhaled slightly.

"Smoke?" she asked in a puzzled tone.

"Yes."

"Do you think there's a fire?" she inquired because if there was, then they had to get to their daughter posthaste.

"No, this is a different type of smoke. Get dressed."

Kikyo nodded because she could sense what her husband meant. The smoke scent was being accompanied by several demonic auras. She dressed quickly as did Sesshomaru. They both armed themselves just in time. Five men appeared in the room as soon as the couple had their weapons in hand.

"Smoke demons," Sesshomaru said while shaking his head. They made such horrible ninja despite being able to appear and vanish at will. They smelled too strongly of smoke; they could not even sneak up on humans.

"What do you want?" Kikyo demanded to know.

"Your life," one of the intruders answered.

Sesshomaru decided that he heard enough just from those two words. He attacked using the Toukijin, disregarding the fact that he was in own bedroom. The blade went right through the ninja without harming him; damn all creatures made of mist, the demon lord thought with a frown.

Three of the ninjas approached Kikyo. She quickly armed her bow and released an arrow; she seemed to care just as much as Sesshomaru that they were currently in their sleeping chambers. The projectile went through one of the ninjas; his body dispersed like a cloud as the missile sailed through it. He snickered as his body reformed.

"You can't stop me that way," he informed Kikyo.

"Are you certain?" she inquired because there was a hole in his solid body where her arrow had gone through.

"What the hell?" he gasped when he took note of his wound.

Kikyo quickly reloaded her bow and unleashed another arrow at the injured intruder. Before she could launch another missile, one of the ninja tackled her. She grabbed him by the shoulders as he aimed a thin, needle shuriken at her throat. She shocked him with her spiritual energy while the third ninja pulled out a short sword. He was about to impale the priestess with his blade until he felt something pass through his stomach. He looked down to see the point of Toukijin protruding from his gut.

Sesshomaru knew that the ninja he had stabbed was about to say something smart, but he did not want to hear it. He did not give the ninja a chance to open his mouth and utter any condescending last words. Toukijin's malevolent power surged through the blade and completely disintegrated the smoke demon. Apparently, Toukinjin was not as useless against the smoke demons as they would have liked it to be.

The dog demon turned around as he was done with the third ninja to pay attention to the last two. Kikyo quickly climbed to her feet and armed her bow. Kikyo fired an arrow at one ninja while Sesshomaru cut down the other. The couple then turned the each other and then they were struck by the same thought.

"Rin," they gasped simultaneously.

The couple charged out of their room and hurried to Rin's quarters. They were aware that Rin was all right before they even got to the room because they could not sense any anything aside for her in the room, but they still wanted to be sure. They discovered the girl laid out in a dead sleep with her pet kitten sleeping just as hard on her chest. Kikyo smiled a bit at the scene.

"It would appear that they just attacked us," Kikyo sighed in relief.

"Or perhaps…." Sesshomaru trailed off.

"Or?"

"Perhaps they just attacked you," he said because the ninjas had not even gone at him. They had gone directly for Kikyo.

"This is true. I seem to be the cause for many nighttime visits. Why try to kill me, though? Before, when Itachi kidnapped us, it was because he wanted me to kill you," Kikyo reported.

"This is becoming rather irksome because smoke demons only act out assassinations for one lord."

"That lord is not Itachi, is it?" she asked.

"No."

"Then what is to be done?"

"We shall have to pay the lord a visit," he replied and she merely nodded in agreement.

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Next time: Sesshomaru and Kikyo go to find out just what is going on and why someone would send assassins after Kikyo.


	11. Chapter 11

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin. Seriously.

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The trip to find out why assassins had attacked Kikyo was very long, which was about all Rin and Kikyo could think about after a while. Sesshomaru did not seem to notice how much of a journey it was, having a different type of endurance altogether compared to the humans with him. His major concern was saving his wife's life anyway, so he would not care if he had to travel to the other side of the moon because he would do that for her.

The Lord that they had to see had a castle that was even more grandiose than Sesshomaru's ancient home. At first, the guards were not going to allow Kikyo in to sit with the Lord. Apparently it had nothing to do with her being a woman or even a priestess; the lord just disliked interacting with humans in general. Sesshomaru merely promised the guards that it was safer that she remain with him or every demon in the castle would be in danger, especially since she would spend her time fretting about Rin. They seemed to take his words under serious consideration and decided to believe him.

Rin was left with a female demon to look after her. Rin did not mind since she was more comfortable around demons than humans anyway. She seemed especially happy when the woman mentioned cakes, which was all Rin needed to hear; her parents sometimes feared that she would be kidnapped by someone offering her endless cake. Kikyo did not concern herself with Rin going off with the servant because Sesshomaru did not appear bothered by it.

The couple were led to a room and sat formally while waiting for the Lord. They did not speak to each other or even look at each other. They focused their eyes forward and bowed deeply when the Lord finally entered the room.

The Lord was a towering figure, taller than Sesshomaru by almost a head. He appeared to be a powerfully built man with a big belly. He had long white hair along with a matching beard. One of his pointed ears looked like someone had bitten him. He was accompanied by two women, who did not even seem to notice the guests. The giant male sat down and stared at the couple. He had ruby-colored eyes that seemed to glare right through them.

"Lord Kenryoku," Sesshomaru greeted the other lord.

"The little dog demon," the white-haired male replied with a tiny smile.

Kikyo forced herself not laugh since it was such a serious occasion. She could not force away a smile, though. Come on, he had called Sesshomaru "the little dog demon." She was only human for crying out loud.

Sesshomaru glanced down at his mate, more than aware that she was laughing at him on the inside. She should know better, he thought. She was aware that he was not little in any way, shape, or form.

"So, what can I do for the little dog demon?" Lord Kenryoku inquired.

"My lord, my home was invaded not too long ago by smoke demon assassins," Sesshomaru replied.

"Hmm…"

"I have come to believe that they were after my wife," the dog demon continued. He knew that the older lord would not play around and pretend that he had nothing to do with it because that was not Kenryoku's way. If he did not want to be found out and connected to something, he would have used another method.

The white-haired male nodded. "She is quite the tiny woman," he pointlessly noted. "Listen, little dog demon, let's just get to why you're here without you respectfully trying to not accuse me outright when we know what everything is. I do have fruits I would like to get back to."

"As you wish, sir. Why would you wish to slay my mate?" Sesshomaru inquired.

Kenryoku glanced at the silent priestess. He tilted his head slightly to openly expression that he was studying the human. After a few seconds, he turned his attention back to Sesshomaru.

"I do not understand this at all. Why would you do this, Sesshomaru?" the older male asked curiously.

"My choice in mates is my own business, sir," the dog demon replied.

"This is true."

"Why did you attempt to slay my wife?" Sesshomaru inquired again. He was sick of everyone wondering what made him do what he did. It was hardly anyone else's business why he was married to Kikyo. He would rather it remained a mystery because if other males came sniffing after her, there would be hell to pay.

"I have been told that she reduced a great deal of Itachi's clan to dust."

"That she did," Sesshomaru confirmed.

"And what she left standing, you supposedly made sure was gone from existence."

"Indeed." The dog demon wanted to wipe out the memory of those wretched, vile, and utterly foolish creatures that would dare do anything against him and his family.

"But, why should she go unpunished for her actions, especially since I hear that you will be making her do such a thing often?"

"Who would tell such bold-face lies?" the silver-haired demon demanded to know, even though he could guess who was spreading such fantastic stories. He wondered what other insane tales Itachi had told the older lord.

"She has to be punished for her actions," Kenryoku said casually, as if the dog demon should not care that he desired to murder his wife.

"She was merely defending herself and our daughter," Sesshomaru informed the older man.

"Your daughter? You haven't been married long enough to have a daughter," Kenryoku pointed out.

"I've adopted my ward because my wife and I see the child as our own. Lord Itachi kidnapped them from our home after tempting me from them by having bandits raid one of my weaker territories," the dog demon explained civilly.

"And why would he do a thing like that? What good is she to him?"

"He wished for me to purify Sesshomaru," Kikyo chimed in, speaking in her usual calm tone. "He tried to use our daughter to force my hand, milord."

Lord Kenryoku nodded again. "So, I am expected to believe that you have no malicious intentions?" he asked Kikyo, staring at her intensely with his blood red eyes. She did not falter and he smiled as she answered.

"I merely wish to live as peacefully as possible with my husband and daughter," she replied. He continued to eye her, as if he could see into her heart and soul to understand if she was being sincere or not.

"Where did you find this woman, little dog demon," Kenryoku inquired.

"I wandered across her in my travels or perhaps she wandered across me," Sesshomaru answered.

"She's an odd human, much like that girl in your keep. Perhaps they are related," the older male remarked.

"I doubt it."

"I knew that there was more to Itachi's claim than what he revealed, but his panic was genuine. His fear of his woman is very real, but why should he not be afraid of a woman that took out most his clan and he has angered her? He truly believes that you plan to use her against other demon lords. This is why I sent my assassins," Kenryoku explained in a bit of a bored tone.

"She is quite harmless," Sesshomaru said. Most of the time, he seemed to forget that he was married to a very powerful woman because she did not try to show her strength in any way.

"She is far from harmless. I understand that Itachi has reason to fear this woman, but I don't think anyone else does. As long as no one does her any harm, I can see that she is quite content to be left to her life. I will ask your forgiveness for my rash actions. I didn't give her much consideration since she is just a human," the red-eyed lord requested.

"It is quite all right, sir. Might you tell me where I can find Itachi before he spreads more lies and my bedroom is crawling with ninja of all types?" Sesshomaru asked.

"He headed north, more than likely staying with your favorite enemy. You should have no problem tracking him. Sesshomaru."

"Sir?"

"Perhaps you should be just a bit more open with your marriage. The secrecy will stir up fears and speculations, especially when people find out that she is a priestess. Demons will always question your true motives, especially when you treat her as an equal and toy with them by having her attend meetings."

"You have heard about that?"

"So many people have come crying to me because of that. You have everyone very confused," Kenryoku informed the platinum-haired demon.

"Sir, what I do is my own business. If anyone wishes to speculate on and act on their false ideas, they will merely suffer our combined wrath," Sesshomaru replied.

"I would expect no less from you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get back to my fruit," Lord Kenryoku informed the couple and then he left them alone in the room.

Sesshomaru and Kikyo rose to their feet. They turned to stare at each other for a moment. They decided against speaking and just went to collect their daughter. The couple practically had to drag Rin away from a pile of sweets and they headed home.

"You are going to go after him, aren't you?" Kikyo asked Sesshomaru as they made their way back to his lands.

"It is a must or he'll continue to make powerful demons believe that you're a plot of some kind against him," Sesshomaru replied; he was carrying Rin, who was sleeping peacefully.

"I wonder why he would think such a thing in first place."

"He's a weasel demon. Who knows how their warped minds work aside for other weasel demons. They always assume people are just as sneaky and warped as they are."

"But, I am just one woman. How can he think that I pose a threat to anyone?"

Sesshomaru glanced down at her. "You would stand here and act so modest when I, of all people, know that you are not?" he asked in a slightly amused tone. She was one woman like he was one man; waves of people could still die by their hands.

"I still couldn't take down an entire army of demons. I certainly couldn't sneak into a castle and take out a demon lord without reason," she pointed out. Powerful she was, but stealth was not on her business record.

"As I said, weasel demons just assume that all people are as sneaky as they are. They don't use logic when coming to conclusions. They just spin implausible tales, thinking up what they would do if possible. Obviously, if he could have you, he would try to use you in such a manner, whether you're capable or not."

Kikyo only nodded to show that she understood. She did not see why Lord Itachi would think that she could be used as a weapon. Yes, she could kill large numbers of demons if she was armed, but she failed to see the point in doing such without an excellent reason. There was never a time in her life where she just went out hunting demons; she was a priestess, not a demon slayer.

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Kikyo put Rin to bed when they returned home. She went to stand with Sesshomaru in the garden when she sure that Rin was secure. He took hold of her hand and moved her to where she was in front of him. He rested his head in her soft, ebony hair. He nuzzled her a moment, just enjoying how she felt.

"I'll never let anything harm you," he promised in a whisper.

"I know," she replied.

"I will do this as swiftly as possible, so as not to leave you alone too long."

Kikyo smiled a bit. "Is that the only reason you'll do this as swiftly as possible?" she teased.

"Well, I don't think it's very appropriate to share my other reasons," he replied.

The priestess shook her head a little bit; being married to a demon certainly was an entertaining and educational experience. She could only wonder what their union would be like years from then; she planned to be with him for the rest of her life of course. Would they always be as they were now?

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Next time: the conclusion


	12. Chapter 12

I don't own Sesshomaru, Kikyo, or Rin.

This is the final chapter. Enjoy. Thanks to everybody that read and reviewed this.

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Sesshomaru left his home almost as soon as he arrived to go hunting for that filthy weasel lord that had tried to use his beloved against him, kidnapped his family, and then nearly got his beloved assassinated. He easily caught Itachi's scent since he knew what direction the weasel demon went in. He could not even think about what he was going to do when he caught that rat of an aristocrat. He could picture himself doing so many terrible things, but when it all came down to it, they were rather deadly things. That mean that he would only be able to do one, maybe two things to the bastard before Itachi passed on to the next life. He had to decide on what was the most agonizing thing that he could possibly do to the other lord.

The dog demon figured that he would use Itachi as an example while taking his revenge on the foolish nobleman. No one would even think to come after Kikyo after he got through with Itachi. In fact, the whole demon population would have nightmares if just one person considered touching his mate when he was done with the weasel lord. Perhaps he could send a piece of Itachi to every demon around with a little note attached, he considered. He doubted that there was enough of the pompous jackass to go around, though; maybe he would be able to just send pieces to demon clans and demon lords. It sounded like something he could do.

As Sesshomaru tracked the weasel demon, he realized that more men might be after Kikyo at that very moment. He could not turn around, only hope that she could handle herself, along with the dozens of men that he left orders with that if she was so much as scratched, they should runaway and never look back because he would not tolerate that. He did believe that Kenryoku would set other lords straight on Kikyo to avoid other demons making attempts on her life; Kenryoku would not want to see so many people throw their lives away, unless he was going to gain land from it anyway. So, Sesshomaru thought that he had some time to stop Itachi from spreading any more lies.

When the dog demon entered the domain of the Lord of the north, he was almost immediately attacked; he had only been in the borders for about five minutes before men assaulted him. He and the daimyo whose lands he was currently in detested each other in a very bizarre fashion. It was more of a habit than anything else because he could not recall what they might have done to each other to spark such a strange hatred. Their fathers had despised each other, so it just seemed that the sons inherited the intense loathing with their lands. They tended to avoid and ignore each other more than anything else; war seemed like a pointless matter because neither had anything that the other wanted, not even land.

Sesshomaru made it to the Lord's castle without a real problem. He felt a bit mocked by the forces that he had been sent against him; it was almost like the Lord wanted those men to die. He calmly entered the castle and easily made his way straight to the man in charge.

"Sesshomaru," the daimyo said as the dog demon entered the room he was taking his evening meal in. He appeared to be a bit younger than Sesshomaru, looking like a teenager. He had a complexion close to the color of clay. A white, five pointed star was centered on his forehead. His head was crowned with shoulder length, curly black hair. His lips were painted crimson and curled into a tiny smile.

"Kemuri," Sesshomaru replied in his usual tone. It did not sound like he detested the other lord at all.

"You got here much faster than I thought," the lord, Kemuri commented as if he was amused. He sounded almost like a little boy when he spoke. His voice was also calm like the silver-haired demon in his presence.

"Those men that met me?"

"Merely criminals who would have been pardoned had they slain you."

"Interesting execution style," Sesshomaru muttered.

"I'm sure it was most interesting to see. I should have come out," the younger noble replied with his smile still in place.

"I'm here for Itachi," the dog demon stated. He knew that if he stood there and actually spoke with Kemuri nothing would get done. The younger lord was good for running his mouth about nothing at all; the sound of his own voice seemed to entertain him just as much as carnage seemed to.

"My uncle told me that you'd be coming for him. He is somewhat of a guest, though, and I couldn't just hand him over to you, even though he has worn out his welcome as weasels always do. Shall we fight for him?" Kemuri proposed in a very lighthearted tone. His voice belied the deadly and murderous demon that he was.

"I don't have time for that."

"Oh, how sad," Kemuri sighed as if he was disappointed and then suddenly he shot forward. He charged Sesshomaru while drawing his sword, which was at his side. He was on the dog demon in a flash and he certainly would have cut down most other demons. They clashed swords and Kemuri smiled wider, revealing his rather long fangs. "Tell me about the woman," the clay-skinned lord demanded; his voice was now more of a snarl than a childish tone.

"She is my mate," Sesshomaru answered while standing his ground. He could feel that Kemuri was trying to push him back.

"Is she such a dangerous priestess?"

"She is a priestess," the dog demon confirmed.

"My uncle allowed her in his presence?"

"He did."

Kemuri continued to grin like a delighted devil and then he leaped back just as suddenly as he had come forward. He sheathed his sword as he went back to his seat. Sesshomaru returned Toukijin to his side. Kemuri kept his attention on his unwanted guest, still looking very amused, like a pyromaniac that started a new fire.

"Where is Itachi?" Sesshomaru inquired.

"I released him into the woods. I thought that it would be fun to see you hunt him down," the younger lord answered.

"You're a strange boy," Sesshomaru commented.

"At least I'm not married to a human," Kemuri countered.

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes for lack of a better thing to do. As much as he disliked Kemuri, he had to admit that the little sadist was as hospitable as to be expected. He was also quite reasonable; now if only he was a bit saner, they might actually be able to get along.

"Kemuri, did you believe him?" Sesshomaru asked curiously.

"I had no reason to. I merely entertained him. Besides, would it not be interesting to face a priestess in battle? Or better still, to have her assault me in my bed?"

"Itachi obviously ran to the wrong place for refuge."

Kemuri only laughed. Sesshomaru left; he was confident that Kemuri had not any assassins after Kikyo without even having to ask. He was not sure if Kemuri even had assassins in his staff. The young demon tended to like to do his own dirty work, out in the open even when it was possible. The concept having ninja seemed lost on him.

Sesshomaru exited the castle and sniffed out Itachi, who was wandering in the woods just as the young lord said he was. The weasel demon gasped before he even caught sight of the golden-eyed lord; he smelled Sesshomaru before anything. He tried to run as fast as he could, but he knew that he would not escape vengeful platinum-haired demon.

"Itachi," the dog demon snarled. He had no idea how truly angry he was until he saw Itachi. His eyes bled over, even though he did not plan to transform. He was close to charging the weasel and just tearing his head off with his bare claws, but he fought that impulse. He wanted the disgusting weasel to suffer.

"Sesshomaru," Itachi swallowed nervously.

"You wanted my mate to kill me and you were willing to use our daughter to force her hand?" the silver-haired male inquired with a deep growl.

Itachi cowered, having never seen Sesshomaru completely lose his composure before. The dog demon drew Toukijin and slowly approached Itachi, scaring the weasel demon even more so than he already was. Sesshomaru enjoyed seeing the shorter man shake with fear; he liked the smell of terror radiating from the onyx-eyed coward. It was a good start to making the fool experience as much terror and pain as possible.

Itachi actually managed to dodge Sesshomaru's first attack, which only served to make the taller lord even more vexed. He continued to go after the frightened noble, who continued to dodge the energy attacks coming from Toukijin. Sesshomaru took one last slash at Itachi, surprising the weasel because it was a regular swipe.

"What the…?" Itachi began to gag. He put his hand to his throat as blood oozed out his neck; Sesshomaru had cut his throat.

"I'm not done with you yet," Sesshomaru declared.

The weasel demon tried his best to run off, but before he even made it two steps, Sesshomaru was blocking his path. He gasped and tumbled backwards. He tried to run off again, but ran into the chest of a certain extremely upset demon. Itachi trembled as he attempted to back away, but he did not make it far. Sesshomaru snarled and put his hand through the shorter male's chest. Itachi coughed and gagged.

"No one will ever harm my mate as long as I'm alive," Sesshomaru informed the injured man.

Itachi was unable to say anything back. Sesshomaru withdrew his hand, pulling out whatever he could from the coward's torso, and the weasel lord collapsed. The body of the lord began to dissolve because Sesshomaru had used his poisonous touch on the man. He wanted to make a statement that he would not be merciful to those that tried anything against his family.

Sesshomaru walked away from the body, knowing that once Kemuri discovered the corpse, everyone would know because the boy enjoyed talking about death. The young demon liked to discuss agony and torment. The clay-skinned lord would spread the news far and wide as to why and how Sesshomaru killed Itachi because he liked bad news and the more disgusting the bad news, the better to him. He liked to scare people too, even if was not of him. He might actually make it sound worse than it was, Sesshomaru considered.

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When Sesshomaru returned home, it was late at night. He went to check on Rin first just because something in him wanted to see the little girl. She was out as usual with her little kitten resting at her side. He shook his head; he wished that she had different favorite pet. The cat really irked him.

Sesshomaru then turned and went to his bedroom. Kikyo was sleeping, as he expected her to be. He sat down next to her and her warm, chocolate eyes flickered open. He figured that she would wake up because she probably sensed him even in her sleep; it was not like she was heavy sleeper anyway. She reached out for him and grabbed him around the waist. She pulled herself to rest against his legs and he caressed her cheek.

"So, what now?" Kikyo asked.

"What do you mean?" Sesshomaru countered.

"Is noble life always so interesting?"

"Unfortunately."

"I suppose I'll have to get used to it then," she commented.

"Unfortunately, but I'll be here with you all the way," he replied and leaned down to kiss her. He could only wonder what other paranoid people would concoct bizarre stories to trouble him and his family, but he knew something would come up because something always did.

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That's it for this. I wasn't too into it. I think I might have to stick to AU. So, see you guys next fic, which will be an AU. I hope you guys enjoyed this one, though. Thanks again for reading.


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